The Harem of Lorenzo Alcazar
by JillStories
Summary: This is an homage to a fic I read a long time ago by Deb Swanson (with help from a few other authors) called
1. Default Chapter

Sage Alcazar had thought she was done crying over Dillon, but then the little bastard had actually gone and gotten her a Christmas present: her very own DVD copy of "It's a Wonderful Life." She pushed the coffee table out of the way and settled down on the floor with some pillows to watch the movie. The movie was stupid. Pure schmaltz. Sage found herself crying yet again and rolled over in frustration. She sniffled, then noticed the fact that the underside of the coffee table was wired with enough plastique to blow her and her uncle straight into the next life.  
  
Lorenzo reacted far more calmly than Sage had. He had little use for law enforcement in general, but this was an exception. They evacuated his building and had the bomb defused without too much fanfare. He supposed that the police would still be questioning him if it hadn't been for the series of explosions that had rocked Port Charles two hours later.  
  
As for the culprit, Lorenzo's first guess had been Faith until his men informed him that her base of operations had been hit, as had her penthouse and Zander Smith's apartment. The lucky bitch had been arrested the evening before for the murder of Emily Quartermaine and had been in jail when the explosion destroyed her home. Then the man he had following Sonny Corinthos had called in. The roof had been blown off Harborview Towers. Carly and Sonny, as well as Jason and Courtney Morgan, had been inside.  
  
A strange grief gripped Lorenzo's heart and he hadn't been able to stop himself from heading to the scene. From blocks away it had been clear that the top few stories of Harborview Towers were completely gone. The debris littering the streets had halted traffic for blocks surrounding the building had blocked traffic. He stopped the car and just stared at the wreckage for a few minutes as his heart accepted the truth. Carly was gone.  
  
With a grim determination, Lorenzo returned to the penthouse. He had wanted Sonny dead, but never Carly. Someone had tried to murder himself and his niece. They had nearly succeeded. Somebody was going to pay. Andrew Staples had been wary of taking this case the first time Faith Roscoe had called. Only after Faith's minion, Zander Smith, had produced compromising pictures of him with his mistress that had he reluctantly agreed. It wasn't that he didn't believe in his client's innocence. The evidence that Faith Roscoe had killed Emily Quartermaine was damning, but far too obvious for his tastes. The problem was the ultimatum he'd been given when he took the case; win, or lose his wife, in a far more permanent way than the pictures alone would accomplish.  
  
Faith was surprised to see her lawyer arrive in Zander's place. He quickly explained that he was only there to bring her a note from Zander. An early morning phone call from Mr. Smith had convinced him that it was in his best interest to pay a visit to the hospital. Fortunately, Faith had a lawyer who knew what was good for him, and right now good for him included playing messenger between Faith and Zander.  
  
Andrew withdrew the note from his pocket and handed it to her. Faith already had an idea what the note would say; she had overheard police officers talking about the series of pre-dawn explosions. After reading the note left Faith Roscoe was, for once in her life, speechless. The note had been written from Zander's room at General Hospital and covered only the pertinent facts. A blast had taken out Faith's base of operations. Another had blown the roof off of Harborview Towers, and both Sonny and Carly Corinthos and Jason and Courtney Morgan were dead. A third and fourth had decimated her hotel room and Zander's apartment. Zander had just been returning home from a one-night stand when the explosion had occurred and had been in the hall outside his apartment, rather than inside where he most certainly would have died. As it was, he was yet again in GH, waiting for them to finish setting his broken arm and stitching his wounds closed. Faith supposed that the only reason that she was still alive was that she had spent the last 24 hours in jail.  
  
Her ice blue stare had her lawyer pinned to his seat across from her in the interrogation room at PCPD headquarters. When she had finally digested the information he had given her, the questioning began.  
  
"How many explosions were there. Exactly."  
  
"I don't know, Mrs. Roscoe." He was finding himself squirming like a schoolboy under her gaze.  
  
"You read the papers. What did they say?"  
  
"Mrs. Roscoe, this happened too late to make the papers. I heard on the radio that there were a bunch, maybe seven or eight, but I wasn't paying much attention at the time."  
  
"I pay you to pay attention, Andrew." Faith's voice was deceptively sweet voice. Then the full force of the malice behind her words broke through. "Don't come back without more information."  
  
Fortunately, Zander was able to sign himself out against medical advice only two hours later. Normally, he would never dare greet Faith wearing only a t-shirt and jeans, but the explosion had left him with only a torn jacket and the clothes on his back.  
  
As he entered the police station, he saw a distraught-looking Alexis holding Kristina. Alexis approached Zander, her concern evident. "Zander, what happened to you?"  
  
"A bomb in my apartment. Lucky for me, I was just getting home. I hadn't made it through the door yet." Even though they seldom saw one another, he and Alexis were on good terms.  
  
"You got one too?" Alexis was surprised. She patted a sleeping Kristina on the back. "I just happened to be up. Kristina is teething and she wouldn't quit crying. I was going crazy, so I decided to take her for a ride in the car. It usually knocks her right out. When we came back, we couldn't get into the building. The police say that my apartment was the site of the explosion. They're not saying much else."  
  
"To me, either. Look, I'm glad you're OK, but I've gotta get to Faith before her head explodes." Zander couldn't help expecting her traditional lecture on his employment choices.  
  
For once, Alexis bit her tongue. "If you find out why I'm mixed up in this, please let me know. If it were just me, I'd assume it was Helena, but this is something much bigger. I can't imagine why Helena would come after you."  
  
"I don't think Helena did this, if it's any comfort," Zander said quietly as he turned to enter the interrogation room.  
  
Faith looked him over. He looked like he had just walked out of an explosion. That was good. Zander had his priorities in order. If he'd taken the time to buy a change of clothes, Faith would have ripped him a new one. Taking time to chat with Alexis Davis, however, was grounds for a dressing- down.  
  
"You got my note?" Zander asked, once the door closed behind him.  
  
"You kept me waiting so you could talk to Alexis Davis, Zander. Not smart. You better have every single detail about what went down last night."  
  
"You mean what blew up last night. Harborview Towers. My apartment. Your penthouse. Your warehouse. I heard that Alcazar got one too, but the PCPD defused his bomb. The one I don't get is Alexis Davis. She isn't involved with any of this."  
  
"I care about her why?"  
  
"Whoever did this is organized. All the explosions went off within minutes of each other, and the docks are crawling with guys with Brooklyn accents."  
  
"Soleto," Faith muttered angrily.  
  
"Faith, I don't know if this is important, but Emily told me that her Aunt Tracy was married to Soleto." Zander buried the pain that the mention of Emily had caused. "Tracy is going by Quartermaine and hasn't been wearing any wedding rings. The timing of her return seems a little suspicious."  
  
Faith's mind was running over her encounters with Tracy. "It would explain how they knew so much without anyone getting wind of their plans."  
  
"The new casino boat was hit, too. I heard Tracy wanted gambling rights for a casino, but Luke Spencer had a prior claim. The only one who doesn't make sense is Alexis."  
  
So Alexis Davis had been a target, too. Faith didn't need any more information. "Get Lorenzo Alcazar down here. Tell him I have information he needs."  
  
Lorenzo Alcazar walked into police headquarters with the confident arrogance that was his public persona. There was no sign of his grief. This pain was nothing compared to the pain of losing Sophie. He would live through this as he had lived through that. His only concern at the moment was determining whether Faith Roscoe had any information that would be of use to him.  
  
"Lorenzo." Faith's tone was businesslike.  
  
"Faith." Lorenzo's tone was equally businesslike. "I assume you had a good reason for calling me here."  
  
"You're here because you want something from me. Information. I called you here because I want something from you in exchange."  
  
"What do you want, Faith?" Lorenzo was certain that his time would be better spent on business.  
  
"I want a partnership. If I weren't in jail, it would be my men taking over this city. I need someone on the outside. As it is, I need someone running things until I'm out."  
  
"Why would I agree to work with you, Faith?"  
  
"Because, you want to run your product through Port Charles. If I. if we take over the Morgan-Corinthos territory, you'll have the Northeast locked up, along with the Caribbean."  
  
Lorenzo wondered what angle she was working. "I have no desire to be the next Sonny Corinthos, Faith."  
  
"That's where I come in. We do things my way, we both get what we want."  
  
Lorenzo considered her proposal. The time was right for a takeover. and apparently someone else thought so as well.  
  
"I came here for information, Faith. What do you know?"  
  
"I know who is behind the explosions." Faith was confident.  
  
"Soleto's men are all over the city."  
  
"Lorenzo. so naïve for such a worldly man." Faith chuckled. "Tracy Quartermaine is in league with Soleto, and she has a partner."  
  
"Who?"  
  
"Oh, no. You don't get to see what's behind door number three until we come to terms."  
  
Lorenzo's eyes locked with Faith's. His expression was unreadable. "A fifty- fifty split," he replied at last.  
  
Faith's gaze was cold as steel. "Sixty-forty. My men are in position for the takeover."  
  
Lorenzo's gaze was just as cold. "I won't be your junior partner. Isn't that what you have Smith for?"  
  
Faith took stock of her situation. She would have nothing if she waited too long.  
  
"Fifty-fifty, and you get me out of here. Alexis Davis was a target, too. She's going to be my new lawyer. I want you to make it happen."  
  
"And how do you expect me to do that?" As far as Lorenzo was concerned, the deal was done.  
  
"I didn't murder Emily Quartermaine. She was, however, engaged to Nikolas Cassadine. Alexis Davis was also a target of last night's bombings. She's Nikolas's aunt, the bastard daughter of Mikkos Cassadine. My family goes way back in this town, Lorenzo. I know my history."  
  
"You also like to hear yourself talk. Tell me. Who is Tracy's partner?"  
  
"Helena Cassadine. The way I see it, she murdered Emily Quartermaine and had me set up as revenge for my. rough handling. of her grandson." 


	2. Alexis

Lorenzo left Faith in the interrogation room and found himself watching as Alexis Davis fed animal crackers to her baby. Doing her civic duty was probably getting old right about now. The PCPD's resources were stretched paper-thin by the explosions and the officer who had brought Alexis down to the station had been dispatched to the hospital.  
  
He made a quick call on his cell phone, then approached the woman who had killed his brother.  
  
"Ms Davis." Lorenzo took a seat at the officer's desk, "I understand that your apartment was destroyed. Congratulations on your good luck."  
  
"What do you mean by that?" Alexis kept her tone light for Kristina, but she was making it clear that this was not a social visit. "I hardly think that losing everything I own qualifies as good luck, Mr. Alcazar."  
  
"But Ms Davis, you still have the two things most precious to you: your life and that of your daughter." He needed to win this woman over, and her actions over the course of the last year had convinced him that her daughter was her first priority.  
  
"True, and I mustn't forget the diaper bag. If I had to pick one possession to have with me right now, that would be it." Alexis stopped herself from babbling on about the utility of the diaper bag. Lorenzo Alcazar wanted something from her, and she wouldn't forget it.  
  
"Unfortunately, the careful façade of invulnerability that I work so hard to maintain has been shattered," Alexis said ruefully. "You wouldn't happen to know anything about that, would you, Mr. Alcazar?"  
  
"I have information," Lorenzo stated firmly.  
  
Alexis raised an eyebrow. "And you have a reason for sharing this information with me."  
  
Lorenzo ignored the implied question. "You are a target just as Emily Quartermaine was a target."  
  
Alexis stiffened in her chair, causing Kristina to fuss. "So Faith didn't kill Emily?"  
  
"Think, Ms Davis. Was Miss Quartermaine the type of wife Helena Cassadine would choose for her grandson?" Lorenzo asked gently. He could see the determined set of her jaw and knew the answer to the question. "Of course not. Faith's treatment of your nephew made her the logical person to implicate in the murder."  
  
"Helena has no interest in the other. targets." Alexis was thinking of Zander. This could not be true.  
  
"Who said that Helena was working alone?"  
  
Alexis Davis might be in denial, but he was certain that she would piece together the truth soon enough.  
  
Kristina's fussing got louder and Alexis realized that she was holding her daughter too tightly. She had lived with the threat of Helena Cassadine for more years than she cared to remember, and she had thought herself immune to her threats. But now that she had Kristina, the idea of Helena taking the ultimate vengeance still had the power to make her feel like a scared little girl. She couldn't lose Kristina again, and she wouldn't allow her daughter to be motherless.  
  
Lorenzo Alcazar was right. There was nothing to tie her to the rest of the targets. Emily's murder served no one's interests but Helena's.  
  
"You're telling me this for a reason." Alexis had resigned herself to the fact that Helena was finally ready to kill her.  
  
Lorenzo realized that they had come to a place where negotiations could begin. "Yes. I will ensure the safety of you and your daughter in exchange for your legal services."  
  
Suddenly it was all becoming clear to Alexis. "I want details. Exactly who am I representing and how exactly do you propose to keep us safe."  
  
"Faith Roscoe is innocent of Miss Quartermaine's murder. She wants you to defend her. Your first priority is securing Mrs. Roscoe's release."  
  
Alexis opened her mouth to tell him she was done being a mouthpiece for the mob, but then closed it again. "First I see the arrangements you've made to keep us safe."  
  
"I will be happy to show you the compound. It is not yet furnished, but construction and landscaping have been completed," Lorenzo said, escorting Alexis and Kristina to the car. Even under these circumstances, Alexis insisted upon a car seat for Kristina, so they stopped by her car to retrieve the seat. Lorenzo watched as Alexis expertly transferred Kristina from the baby carrier to the car seat and secured the car seat with a seat belt. This woman's first priority was most certainly the safety of his daughter. She would have little choice but to agree to his proposal.  
  
When they were seated in the car, he made a phone call.  
  
"Please make the compound ready for the arrival of a baby. We will be there shortly."  
  
With that, he closed the phone and watched as Alexis and the baby played with a teething ring. There was something softer about her when she played with her daughter, and he found the contrast between the sharp lawyer's mind he had observed earlier and her current gentle smile strangely attractive.  
  
_ _ _ _  
  
Alexis had been keeping half an eye out the window, and had noticed the city thin out to be replaced by woods. About ten minutes later, the car began its ascent around a hill. At the top of the hill they came upon a gated property. The first gate opened and the car pulled forward to a second gate. The first gate closed behind them and the driver buzzed the house for entry. The car was effectively trapped while cameras examined the occupants. A few seconds later the second gate opened and the car pulled forward and stopped. Alexis was impressed.  
  
The first thing that she noticed was that there were no windows on the exterior walls of the house. In fact, it looked like a two-story white stucco covered shoebox. The shingled roof was the only decoration, until they came to the front doors. Together they formed an arch, and the gracefully carved wood looked heavy, although the door opened noiselessly. Alexis knocked on the door as she passed through and could hear that the door must have a core of steel.  
  
As she passed through the door, Alexis caught her breath. There was a garden at the heart of the house- a Japanese winter garden. Even the pool and hot tub blended seamlessly with the stream running across the calm expanse.  
  
Alexis noticed that each of the rooms had expansive glass walls facing the courtyard. The rooms would not want for light.  
  
Alexis was again impressed. It was a serene, modern dwelling with elegant lines and plenty of room for a child to play safely.  
  
"Let me show you to the kitchen. It must be time for her to eat. Kristina, is it?"  
  
"Yes, Kristina." Alexis couldn't help be relieved. The cheerios were fine for Kristina to snack on, but she would soon have an unhappy baby if she didn't feed her something more substantial.  
  
"Miss Davis, please meet Esmerelda. Esmerelda has been with our family for many years."  
  
"Hello Miss Davis. So this is the little one." Esmerelda greeted Kristina with a smile, then opened the pantry for Alexis to peruse. "I hope that you will find something she likes."  
  
Alexis was surprised. Lorenzo was better stocked for baby food than she had been.  
  
_ _ _ _ _  
  
"So, what's the catch, Mr. Alcazar?" Alexis already suspected that she would be living here with Lorenzo Alcazar. She was not immune to his charm, and the thought of living in his house left her both uneasy and strangely excited.  
  
Lorenzo watched Alexis, aware that she was nervous about her attraction to him. He needed to reassure her. "There is no catch. Mrs. Roscoe needs your legal services. You have an excellent reputation. I, too, may need your services. If you agree, you will receive my full protection." Lorenzo's eyes held hers as he spoke, "including a highly secure residence."  
  
"I assume you had this built for your own use. Will you be living here as well?" Alexis flushed slightly. She had killed his brother. The attraction she was feeling was completely inappropriate.  
  
"Yes. After this morning's events, safety has become a priority." A war was about to start and he intended to be safely ensconced in the compound before his enemies could make another attempt on his life.  
  
"Won't that be a bit uncomfortable? Expecting your niece to live with the woman responsible for her father's death?" Alexis asked softly. She did not blame herself for Luis's death, but she now wished that she had never gone to confront him. She regretted that defending herself had required his death, if only for his daughter's sake.  
  
Lorenzo no longer blamed Alexis for Luis's death. Luis had brought it on himself, and Lorenzo privately admitted to himself that Luis had become unbalanced during the last year of his life. He respected Alexis for bringing up the subject, but now it needed to be put behind them. "Sage will be returning to boarding school. She will be safer away from all of this." A sad but determined look crossed his face. "I have mourned my brother in my own way, and I am at peace with his death," he said firmly.  
  
With that behind them, he knew that it was time to press for an answer, and he knew what that answer would be. "I can assure you, your privacy will be respected. Can you agree to my terms?"  
  
Alexis was grateful that Lorenzo let the matter of his brother's death drop. As it was, she was finding herself feeling grateful to Lorenzo for providing her with this haven. She could move to Wyndemere, but it was hardly a secure environment, and the thought of finding housing in addition to replacing everything she had lost was quite frankly overwhelming.  
  
"Yes. I feel safe here, and that is the most important consideration at the moment," Alexis said, putting aside her qualms about her soon to be "on call" status for Faith and Lorenzo. She tried not to think very hard about why she felt safe with Lorenzo Alcazar.  
  
"Of course, you will be well compensated for your legal work. The compound is merely my way of ensuring your safety." Lorenzo found himself strangely satisfied by the idea of Alexis and her daughter living under his roof.  
  
There was an awkward moment of silence as the tension between them grew thick. Alexis nervously looked around for any distraction. It came when she saw furniture being carried through the courtyard, including a crib.  
  
"A crib? And how did you know that I'd say yes?" Alexis wondered at his arrogance.  
  
"Furniture can always be returned, Ms Davis. I assumed that you would want to see to your daughter's welfare before you began your work. I was merely ensuring that you would be available to Mrs. Roscoe sooner rather than later. She does not like to wait."  
  
This struck Alexis as funny. "No, I can't see Faith Roscoe waiting patiently in jail while a war for her territory has begun." Alexis paused with a slight smile on her face, then went for it. "And please, call me Alexis."  
  
Lorenzo was impressed that Alexis understood the implications of the events of the night before. This he attributed to her work with Sonny Corinthos. He smiled and extended his hand to shake hers, sealing the deal.  
  
"Welcome to my home, Alexis. I hope that you will call me Lorenzo." 


	3. Gia

Faith Roscoe watched Alexis enter the interrogation room with a mixture of annoyance and relief. Lorenzo had come through, which was good. It was now past noon, which was not good. Every minute she spent in this miserable little piss-ant jail was another minute that her enemies had to take away what she had worked so hard to build.  
  
Faith looked her up and down. She was wearing a suit. This morning she'd been wearing jeans and a sweater.  
  
"You Iwent shopping/I before coming to see me?" Faith was incredulous.  
  
Alexis looked down at her clothes. Wyndham's, straight off the rack. The saleswoman at Wyndham's was putting together a wardrobe for her, but it would take a trip to New York City to get the caliber of clothes she was used to wearing. She was about to explain that she had only bought one outfit before her jaw snapped shut.  
  
"I have a reputation to maintain. It is difficult to command the respect of my colleagues when I am inappropriately dressed, Ms Roscoe."  
  
"Let me clear this up for you. You have one and only one priority. Getting me out of here now. Not tomorrow. Not this afternoon. Now." Faiths eyes glittered dangerously.  
  
"That is unrealistic. You don't want a bail hearing this afternoon." Alexis's voice was firm as she returned Faith's glare.  
  
"Yes. I do." Faith's gaze was unrelenting.  
  
Alexis continued, trying to ignore Faith's tone. "The courthouse is understaffed due to last nights events and Judge Fraser is the only judge hearing motions. Fraser plays golf with the Edward Quartermaine. Tomorrow morning we can get Judge Robinson. She will at least listen to my argument."  
  
"Did I not make myself clear? I need to be released. Today."  
  
"If we take your case to Fraser, you will be denied, Faith. Fraser does not grant bail in murder one cases."  
  
"That is your problem, not mine." Faith's tone was icy.  
  
Alexis counted to ten mentally, then gave up trying to be polite. "Let me make this very clear for you. If Fraser were going to be fair, he would recuse himself from the case. The hearing would then be rescheduled for tomorrow. If Fraser is in Edward's pocket, he will hear the case and deny the motion. If we lose today, we won't be able to try again until after your indictment. Tomorrow is Friday. They won't take this to the grand jury until next week at the earliest. If they drag their feet, it will be the week after that, and let me tell you something, Faith." Alexis lingered on the name, knowing that it would annoy Faith, and relishing the opportunity. "With everything that's going on right now, the D.A. will want to keep you in custody for as long as possible. If you really do want to get out of here, you will follow my advice and wait until tomorrow."  
  
If there was one thing Faith hated, it was backing down. Her cuffed hand formed a fist, but otherwise she gave no sign of her fury at being stuck inside for another day.  
  
"Tomorrow morning then. Do you think you can make Ithat/I happen?" Faith's gaze was practically daring Alexis to hedge.  
  
"Yes, I do." Alexis didn't blink.  
  
"Then do it. You can go." Faith very carefully relaxed her hand. It was all about control.  
  
"Or I can stay and we can get to work on your case. I have to be honest with you, Faith. It would be a lot easier to get you bail if we could establish an alibi for the night of Emily's murder."  
  
"I wasn't killing Emily. Beyond that, where I was and what I was doing are not your business."  
  
Alexis very calmly put down her legal pad and laid her reading glasses on top of it. She was finding that representing Faith Roscoe was an even more thankless task than representing Carly Corinthos had been.  
  
_ _ _ _  
  
Alexis walked out of the interrogation room feeling like she'd gone ten rounds with Faith. Fortunately, long years of handling Cassadine business had given her the patience to hold her temper when dealing with difficult clients.  
  
Alexis almost walked past Gia Campbell on her way out.  
  
"Alexis! I'm so glad you're here. I need your advice," Gia said urgently. Gia's job interning for Alexis had given her great experience, but it hadn't covered this.  
  
"Gia. What are you doing here? Don't you have a final?" Alexis had given Gia time off to study for finals- her law studies were more important than work. Alexis looked closer at Gia. Under her coat she was wearing a silk kimono style tunic with silk pajama pants. On her feet were matching slippers.  
  
"My final was yesterday. I aced it, don't worry. Worry about the fact that I woke up this morning with a deadly snake in my bed and a nest of them in my closet."  
  
Snakes. Just Helena's style. "Have you been spending time with Nikolas?" Alexis knew the answer to the question already.  
  
"Yeah. Tell me psychogranny did not do this. I mean, a few phone calls are one thing, but snakes so poisonous that animal control freaked out? They were Coastal Taipans or something like that. Supposedly the most poisonous in the world. They took one look and evacuated my whole building."  
  
"You had already received warnings from Helena to stay away from Nikolas?" Alexis asked, hoping that she could make Gia see the danger in her situation.  
  
"Yeah, but if you think I'm going to let Helena tell me who I can and can't see, you're dead wrong. Nikolas is in bad enough shape as it is. And no, I didn't tell him about the calls. Nothing is going on between us."  
  
Gia decided to explain. "After Emily died, I just knew how he was going to get, you know? All dark and depressed and isolated. we may not have worked out, but we spent 3 years together, and I still care about him. I've been going out there to make sure he doesn't shut himself off from the world. He doesn't need to know that psychogranny is hassling me about it."  
  
"She's doing more than that. Gia, Helena had Emily killed. It sounds like she tried to have you killed, too," Alexis said, knowing that she was going to have to tell Nikolas this news, too, and knowing also that he would blame himself.  
  
"But I thought Faith killed Emily." Gia asked, then held up a hand. "Never mind. This is so Helena. Do you think this was it, or do you think she'll try again?"  
  
Alexis shook her head. "I really don't know, Gia. I never thought Helena would go this far."  
  
"Well, do you mind if I crash at the office for a few days? I can't go back to my apartment until they're sure they've gotten them all. They're calling in some snake experts to deal with them," Gia said, thinking about all the things in her apartment she wished she had. Like. clothes."  
  
Alexis considered this. "I don't think my office is safe, Gia. I do need your help on a case, though, and I may have a safe place for you to stay."  
  
_ _ _ _  
  
Lorenzo had been able to meet with Faith's lieutenants thanks to the calls Zander had made. The force of his personality, combined with Zander's presence, had been enough to convince them that they now were working for both himself and Faith, and that this was what Faith wanted. Overall, the meeting went well. They would put the word out that there was a one time offer for Morgan's men to join Lorenzo and Faith's organization and fight a takeover by out-of-town muscle.  
  
Zander's presence had been necessary, was still necessary, but Lorenzo didn't like it. Zander was a liability. Unfortunately, he was now Lorenzo's liability.  
  
"Faith values your input. Her men respect you," Lorenzo stated flatly. There seemed to be no choice in the matter.  
  
Zander wasn't exactly thrilled to move from number two to number three in the organization, but that was Faith's call. He was trying to get a read on Alcazar, but he wasn't having much luck. The man seemed to dislike him, yet he had shown him respect during the meeting. Still, Zander thought it was a mistake to trust him. He had his own agenda.  
  
Lorenzo interrupted Zander's thoughts. "Your apartment was destroyed. You will require more secure accommodations." After a pause, Lorenzo continued. "I have a compound outside of town. You may stay there until this war is over."  
  
Zander didn't like it, but wisely kept his mouth shut.  
  
_ _ _ _  
  
When Lorenzo returned to the compound with Zander, he walked in to find Alexis working at the dining room table with a person he recognized as the former Deception model. Zander caught Gia's narrowed eyes and hung back.  
  
Alexis stood. "Zander." She was a bit surprised to see him here, but given his association with Faith, she supposed she shouldn't be. He gave her a wry smile, and Alexis moved to introduce Lorenzo and Gia.  
  
"Lorenzo, this is Gia Campbell." Gia unfolded her long legs and stood, examining Lorenzo up close for the first time. Gia extended her hand for him to shake. "Gia, this is Lorenzo Alcazar."  
  
"Gia is my assistant and a law student at PCU. She will be helping with Faith's case."  
  
"It is lovely to meet you, Gia," Lorenzo said, holding her gaze for a second longer than was necessary.  
  
Suddenly Gia was very aware that her nipples had tightened into pebbles and that she wasn't wearing a bra.  
  
"You'll have to forgive my pajamas. I woke up to a Coastal Taipan snake in my bed and discovered a nest in my closet. Animal control won't touch them."  
  
"That is no surprise. They are the deadliest snakes on earth." So, Gia had enemies as well.  
  
As interesting as it was to watch Gia work her charm on Lorenzo, Alexis chose that moment to interrupt. "May I speak to you privately for a moment?"  
  
Lorenzo nodded and led Alexis into the newly furnished living room leaving Zander to suffer under Gia's glare.  
  
Alexis fiddled with the pencil in her hands, knowing she was overstepping in even making this request. "Gia is a former fiancé of Nikolas. She has been spending time with Nikolas since Emily's death. Apparently, too much time for Helena."  
  
"You want me to invite Gia to stay here at the compound while she helps you with Faith's case," Lorenzo guessed.  
  
"Well, yes. That would be ideal. Gia had already made an enemy of Helena. I believe she called her "psychogranny" to her face on more than one occasion."  
  
Lorenzo chuckled. So the former model had spirit. "There is plenty of room. It will not be a problem."  
  
Alexis released her breath. "Thank you."  
  
"You have spoken with Faith?"  
  
Alexis grimaced. "Did battle is closer to the truth. For a variety of reasons, her bail hearing had to be set for tomorrow morning. Faith was not pleased."  
  
"Very well." This was fortunate. Lorenzo knew that he would have to hold a meeting that night to secure the loyalty of Sonny's men. In spite of Sonny's hatred of him, Lorenzo had made fewer enemies among his men. He felt certain that things would go more smoothly without Faith there.  
  
"Do you believe that she will be granted bail?"  
  
"I believe so. There is always the chance."  
  
"Yes, dealing with human beings there is always risk." Lorenzo looked down at Alexis thoughtfully.  
  
"Is there anything more you require?"  
  
Alexis quickly demurred. "No, everything is wonderful. I have a woman at Wyndham's putting together everything I need for Kristina and myself. She is putting together some things for Gia as well."  
  
"Good. I gather that you know Zander?"  
  
"Yes, we became friends when I defended him in a murder trial. He is devoted to Kristina."  
  
"Perhaps I shall have to reassess my opinion of the boy."  
  
_ _ _ _  
  
in the meantime.  
  
"What are you doing here?" Gia asked Zander bluntly. She was still hurt and angry over the way he had treated her.  
  
"I'm going to be living here. Look, Gia, I'm sorry about what happened. You knew I loved Emily." Just talking about her hurt Zander deeply.  
  
"I'm sorry you lost her, then," Gia said, realizing that Zander was in pain. That was the problem with Zander. She understood him too well to be really angry with him. That didn't mean she'd make the same mistake twice.  
  
"But that doesn't mean you get a free ride for the way you treated me. I deserved better."  
  
Zander sighed. "You do deserve better. That's just not me anymore. I'm burnt, Gia. I don't want to care about anyone and I don't want anyone to care about me."  
  
"I'm sorry, Zander, but that is such a load of bullshit. You're hurting right now. You may never trust the same way again. But don't feed me this "I am an island" routine 'cause you want an excuse to treat your friends like crap. That just don't fly with me."  
  
"It's how I feel. I really am sorry, Gia. You did deserve better."  
  
"Damn straight. And so did you."  
  
_ _ _ _  
  
Late that night:  
  
Gia lay awake, trying to put the nightmare about the snakes behind her. She had brushed it off earlier, but underneath her bravado, the snakes had really scared her.  
  
Finally, she put on her coat and went to sit in the winter garden. Maybe some Japanese zen would calm her mind.  
  
Lorenzo strode through the doorway, trying to put the bloody aftermath of the meeting behind him. A few of Sonny's men had challenged his right to take the territory, wanting it for themselves instead. Fortunately, Lorenzo had sensed trouble from the two ringleaders and called them out. Two shots later, the nascent rebellion was over. The rest of the men had acceded to his leadership.  
  
Lorenzo's blood had run like ice water during the meeting. It wasn't until the ride home, when he had faced down death and survived that he began to feel the familiar rush. Behind his icy façade, his blood now ran hot and wild.  
  
Gia stood and turned when she saw him enter the garden.  
  
"You must be cold, Ms Campbell."  
  
"A little. The garden is beautiful at night. The cold makes me feel more alive."  
  
Lorenzo took in the garden and the beautiful woman standing beside him. "Really." Lorenzo reached out to touch Gia's braids. "You seem more like a woman who blooms in the heat."  
  
Gia flushed under his hungry gaze. Maybe confession was good for more than the soul. "I've been thinking about you all day."  
  
"Have you." He was weighing his options. The tension between them thickened.  
  
Gia wound her arms around his neck and stood on her toes, brushing her lips against his. As soon as their lips made contact, he pulled her flush against him, as close as they could get with their coats on. Her tongue sought entry and Lorenzo drew her into his mouth. Gia poured her pent up desire into the kiss. He responded, his tongue winding around hers and he devoured her mouth, stealing her breath. Starved for air, Gia broke the kiss.  
  
Lorenzo studied her face. She was even more beautiful in the moonlight. "Things could get complicated between us, with you living here. My heart belongs to another woman."  
  
"It's not your heart I've been thinking about." 


	4. Elizabeth

Ric Lansing watched the slow rise and fall of Elizabeth's chest with a lump in his throat. When he had agreed to help Tracy Quartermaine take down Sonny, he had never dreamed that he would get another chance with Elizabeth. Now everything had gone so horribly wrong, yet here she was, asleep in his bed.  
  
Ric had agreed to be less than zealous in his prosecution of Sonny so that Tracy could have him killed after his release. As long as Sonny lived, his empire would remain. Ric had hoped that Sonny's death would result in a transfer of power to Tracy. Tracy had seemed infinitely preferable to Faith or Sonny when she had made her proposal, and a six-figure bribe was sitting in an offshore account.  
  
He hadn't guessed that she planned to kill so many people. The explosions had shocked and sickened him, and the worst part was that there was nothing he could do to bring her to justice. He was bought and paid for, and he knew it.  
  
The call to his cell phone had come as no surprise, and as he watched Elizabeth breathe, he knew that he didn't deserve her- that he should stay as far away from her as possible.  
  
He wouldn't, though. He tore his gaze away from Elizabeth and over to the clock. Tracy would be there any minute. He needed to dress and wait for her downstairs, lest her knock wake Elizabeth.  
  
When he shushed her on the way to his study, her laugh rang out and he called her a fool. Tracy looked him up and down like yesterday's garbage and slapped his face lightly, then patted it.  
  
"You're the fool, Ric. You're my fool." Tracy half sat on the edge of his desk and pulled out a cigarette.  
  
Upstairs, Elizabeth opened her eyes and reached out for Ric. She found the bed empty, and heard the laugh again. Her brow knitted. Who was Ric meeting with at this hour? She wanted to just turn back over and go to sleep, but there was still a part of her that was struggling to trust Ric. That part won out, and Elizabeth crept silently down the stairs.  
  
"You have no power over me." Ric's voice was unconvincing.  
  
Tracy laughed again. "You see, there you're wrong. I have all the power over you I need."  
  
"You lied to me. You said it would only be Sonny."  
  
"You believed me? One murder will get you the same needle that ten will, if you're caught. I don't intend to get caught. I intend to consolidate my power and rule this town. You knew that when you agreed to work with me."  
  
"That was a one time only deal, Tracy."  
  
"Oh, Ricky wants out. Poor baby. That's not the way the game is played, Ric, and you know it."  
  
"I won't be responsible for any more murders."  
  
"Oh, but you will. Tomorrow Faith Roscoe has a bail hearing. You're going to make sure she gets out. I missed her the first time through. Now I'm cleaning up the trash."  
  
"What if I don't do what you say? You'll turn me in? You'll just implicate yourself."  
  
Tracy chuckled. "No. I have no intention of turning you in. You'll do what I say or Elizabeth dies. My men caught your touching little reunion yesterday. I hear she's upstairs right now. You've got everything you ever wanted, Ricky. It would be a shame to lose it."  
  
"Where does it end, Tracy? Why shouldn't I just turn us both in tomorrow?"  
  
"You think my reach won't extend beyond a jail cell? Elizabeth is leverage. Let's say you have a fit of conscience and turn yourself in. How will you protect Elizabeth when you're behind bars, too?"  
  
Elizabeth was sure that they would hear her heartbeat from inside the room. They were certainly going to hear her tears if she didn't leave her position outside the door. She crept back upstairs quietly and wiped her eyes before getting back into bed. How would she sleep knowing that Ric had lied, that his new leaf cast the same shadow as the old?  
  
She could stand one night if it would give her the chance to get away. She wouldn't be Tracy's leverage over Ric. She and her baby deserved better than a man who'd sold his soul to a murderer. She would disappear tomorrow. hr Stopping her tears and lying beside Ric that night was the hardest thing Elizabeth had ever done. Finally, when she was sure he was asleep, Elizabeth got dressed and snuck out of the house. She didn't care that it was the middle of the night. She just knew that she had to leave or she would start screaming. She knew had been an easy target for Ric's advances in the wake of Emily's murder. The worst part was that she truly believed that Ric loved her. He just hated Sonny more. She just thanked God that she hadn't told Ric about her baby.  
  
Elizabeth knew instantly that she should go to Lucky. Lucky could help her disappear- it was a Spencer tradition. It wasn't until halfway to Lucky's place that she realized Lucky was now a cop. He'd want to know why she needed to hide from Ric- he hated Ric for hurting her, and for what he'd done to Carly. Reluctantly, she changed course. She couldn't put Lucky in this position.  
  
Zander was her only option. He was connected now-to Faith. Faith, who'd been responsible for her first baby's death. She just hoped he'd know how to make her disappear without Faith finding out.  
  
She knew his apartment building had been bombed, but she had seen him coming and going from a warehouse on the docks. She'd just have to work up the courage to wait there for him.  
  
Elizabeth pulled her coat around her more tightly and timidly opened the door to the warehouse. A bunch of guys were in there arguing, but one of them caught sight of her.  
  
"What do we have here?"  
  
Elizabeth let go of the door and began to run back towards the docks.  
  
Zander had seen Elizabeth's tearstained face at the door. Who knew what she'd heard? Anything was too much.  
  
Zander stopped Bruno from going after her. "Uh, she's looking for me. I'll take care of her." hr Zander caught up with Elizabeth easily. The ground was icy near the water and she was now making her way very carefully.  
  
"Elizabeth! What the hell do you think you're doing?" Zander looked at his watch. It was 3 a.m.  
  
Elizabeth turned back to face him. "I'm looking for you."  
  
"What the hell do you need me for at this hour of the morning?"  
  
"I need to talk to you."  
  
"This isn't a good time. Don't come back here again." Zander turned his back on her.  
  
She had to stop him. He had to know.  
  
"I'm having your baby." Elizabeth's voice was desperate. She needed Zander not to be what he had become. She needed him to be her friend again. If she couldn't have that, then she would shame him into helping her.  
  
Zander stopped and ran a hand over his face. This was not news he wanted to hear. In fact, his shitty night had just gotten infinitely worse.  
  
He turned to face her. "Aren't you back with Ric?"  
  
Elizabeth hated Faith, but she wouldn't be an accessory to her murder.  
  
"He knew all of this was going to happen. He's working with Tracy. She's threatening to kill me if he doesn't do what she says. They're going to kill Faith tomorrow." It had all just spilled out, and not the way she intended. Elizabeth took a deep breath. "Look, I have to disappear, Zander. I won't be her leverage against Ric. You have to help me."  
  
Zander looked at Elizabeth and thought about the guys back at the warehouse. He was supposed to be securing their loyalty, not worrying about her. Fuck it.  
  
"A baby? You were going to pretend it was Ric's."  
  
"I don't know what I was going to do, Zander. All I know is that I want to be gone by the time Ric wakes up."  
  
He should stash her in a hotel, but the hotels were full of people who'd been evacuated from their homes.  
  
"You can come home with me. I think I know a place where you can stay." hr Lorenzo came out for breakfast and found Zander sitting at the table, apparently waiting for him.  
  
"You know Elizabeth Webber, don't you?"  
  
"Ric's wife. Yes, I know of Mrs. Lansing. Why do you ask?"  
  
"She's not Ric's wife anymore. She's having my kid." There was something wrong with that sentence. Zander knew it. He was in no position to be having a kid.  
  
"This is not a wise time to be involved with her, Mrs. Lansing or not." Lorenzo felt that this was an understatement.  
  
"We're not involved. It was just one of those things. Look, she came with information. She found out Ric is working with Tracy," Zander said, and was surprised at the lack of reaction on Lorenzo's face. The man was still a mystery to Zander. Tracy threatened to kill Elizabeth if he doesn't keep cooperating. He's planning to let Faith walk at the bail hearing so they can hit her afterwards."  
  
Lorenzo gave Zander a piercing look. Zander had been waiting for him, to tell him this first thing in the morning. That meant only one thing.  
  
"Where is she? She's already here, isn't she." Lorenzo's voice held a tinge of disbelief. "Does this look like a hotel?"  
  
"I'm sorry, OK? She needed a place to hide from Ric and Tracy and the hotels are full."  
  
Lorenzo couldn't believe he was putting up with this shit from Faith's lackey. It wasn't that he wasn't willing to protect Mrs. Lansing; it was that Ric had brought the assistant District Attorney's wife into his home without his permission. He didn't need an assistant D.A. with a vendetta against him. His face made that clear.  
  
"She's having my kid. What was I supposed to do? I just need a place to stash her until I can figure out some place to send her."  
  
Lorenzo thought it over, considering and then dismissing Faith's reaction. Faith could learn to live with it. "Fine. But nobody can know that she's here. She doesn't leave. She doesn't make any phone calls. She can help look after Kristina. That's it."  
  
"Thanks, Mr. Alcazar."  
  
"If she breaks the rules, she's out," Lorenzo said harshly. "I won't have this place become a target."  
  
"I'll make it perfectly clear to her."  
  
"See that you do." hr Gia was not a morning person. That was half the reason she had made her way back to her own bed the night before. Unfortunately, Kristina was most definitely a morning person. The baby's cries woke Gia and she found she couldn't go back to sleep.  
  
Having given up on sleep, Gia went out in search of coffee. Alexis was feeding Kristina and Liz Webber or Lansing or whatever she was calling herself these days was eating some crackers with tea.  
  
Gia looked her over. "What are you doing here?" It was too early for Lizzie Webber, and it was too early for tact.  
  
Elizabeth had been watching with a sick fascination as the baby ate. Just the sight of the goop was making her more nauseous. It was almost a relief when Gia spoke.  
  
"The same thing as you, Gia. I needed a safe place to stay."  
  
This did not compute. It wasn't until Gia had a cup of coffee in her hands that she put the pieces together. Tea and crackers. Liz suddenly NOT with Ric. Gia looked hard at Liz.  
  
"Nice pregnancy boobs," Gia said at last. "So, let me guess. Zander has been a busy boy."  
  
Elizabeth's jaw dropped. How in the hell had she put that together? "It's none of your business, Gia."  
  
Gia just chuckled. "And after all the shit you gave Carly. Is it something in the water? Or has nobody heard of condoms around here."  
  
Alexis grimaced. That remark hit a little too close to home. She looked up from feeding Kristina. "I wouldn't mention Carly around here, Gia."  
  
"Oh, right." Gia knew about Lorenzo's fascination with Carly from hanging around Kelley's.  
  
Gia shook her head and chuckled again as she sipped her coffee. She'd always known Liz was a gigantic hypocrite, this just proved it.  
  
Elizabeth snapped. "Would you just shut up!"  
  
Lorenzo walked into the fray. "Ladies?"  
  
Alexis looked from Gia to Elizabeth. "Mr. Alcazar has been kind enough to let us stay here. Let's not make him reconsider his generosity."  
  
Gia smiled, remembering the night before. She was in too good a mood to have it ruined by offending Lorenzo. "It's OK Alexis. I apologize, Liz."  
  
Something in Gia's tone reminded Lorenzo of Carly and Lorenzo hid a sad smile.  
  
Elizabeth bit her tongue. Like she believed that one. Losing her best friend and being betrayed by the man she loved were bad enough, but to be housebound with Gia was just too much.  
  
Gia took another sip of her coffee looking at Liz over the rim of her mug with amusement, then turned to Alexis. "I could really get used to using Westlaw instead of your law books. I got the citations you needed in less than half an hour and wrote you up a brief. You've got a really strong argument for bail for Faith."  
  
Elizabeth paled visibly and left the table without a word. Unfortunately, she had stood too quickly and needed to hold the back of the sofa for support. She hated feeling like this, afraid of Faith, and so angry that Alexis and Gia were working to set her free.  
  
Lorenzo looked from Alexis to Gia and could see that they didn't know what was wrong with Elizabeth either. Good manners dictated that he see to the comfort of his guests, no matter how numerous they had become. Without a word, he followed her.  
  
"Mrs. Lansing."  
  
"Don't call me that," Elizabeth said sharply, then willed her tears away as she glanced back at Lorenzo. "Just Elizabeth is fine."  
  
"Elizabeth, you seem upset. If there is anything I can do."  
  
Elizabeth stared out the window, remembering. "Faith pushed me down a flight of stairs last time I was pregnant. I lost the baby."  
  
Elizabeth felt a hand cover hers. "Then she poisoned me. I know how possessive she is of Zander. I don't want to think of what she'll do. I don't want to lose another child to her."  
  
"You won't." Lorenzo's voice carried a certainty that Elizabeth found it hard to believe. "You are here under my protection. I take that responsibility seriously. I will make certain that Mrs. Rosco understands that nothing touches the inhabitants of this house."  
  
Elizabeth looked up at Lorenzo gratefully and turned her hand to grasp his. "She won't like it. You two must be partners if Zander is living here. Will she be living here, too?"  
  
Elizabeth looked so fragile that Lorenzo couldn't help the impulse to protect her. "There is another wing across the courtyard. That is where I conduct my business. If Mrs. Rosco is willing to respect the safety and privacy of all of those under my protection, she will live there."  
  
"That's where Zander is staying. I wondered why he put me in the bedroom next to Gia's."  
  
"I take it that you and Ms Campbell are already acquainted." Lorenzo could not imagine that the two women would be friends.  
  
Elizabeth raised an eyebrow. Her fear had passed and she could see the irony of her current living situation.  
  
"Yeah, we were engaged to brothers. It seems like a very long time ago." Elizabeth shook off the memories of the cottage and smiled a wry smile. "We annoy each other, but we lived together before and nobody got poisoned."  
  
Lorenzo was glad he could put the matter to rest. "Esmerelda is an excellent cook, and she runs the kitchen. Nobody will be poisoned this time either." 


	5. Skye

Skye Chandler Quartermaine was sipping her juice and picking at a croissant, wondering yet again why the Quartermaines insisted on a buffet breakfast together in the living room of all places. Perhaps it was a subtle acknowledgement that family meals had little to do with food and more to do with power plays. Today Skye was ostensibly there to discuss her adoption with Alan. Unfortunately, Alan was late and Tracy appeared in his place.  
  
"Skye, what an unpleasant surprise. I thought we were rid of you after the scene you caused at Christmas." Tracy swirled the orange juice in her glass, preparing for combat.  
  
Skye smiled falsely at Tracy. "Being the subject of a Quartermaine feud just makes me feel more like one of the family, Tracy."  
  
"Oh. So you didn't get the message. We. Don't. Want. You." Tracy's glare was glacial. Could it really be that Skye had no idea who she was talking to? advertising her  
  
"I don't know which "we" you are referring to. Alan has not changed his mind about adopting me formally. He is already more of a father to me than Adam Chandler ever was." Skye wondered to herself why she hadn't insisted on meeting Alan for breakfast someplace civilized.  
  
"Alan has already proved that he's a failure as a father. Jason is a mobster, A.J. is a drunken thief, and his last attempt at adoption, Emily, is a self-righteous prig. Are you really so desperate for love that you'll beg for it from a man who will forget you exist the moment his back is turned?"  
  
Skye held her chin a little higher. "I could ask you the same about Edward."  
  
"I was born with this pedigree. I don't have to justify my presence in the family." Tracy's tone was menacing. "You, on the other hand, would be making a big mistake to try and sneak in the back door with this pseudo- adoption."  
  
"The only mistake, Tracy, would be taking advice from you." Skye had faced down many people in her time, but underneath her bravado she had to admit that she almost believed Tracy's threatening tone.  
  
"This is your one and only warning. You will never live to see the day you are a Quartermaine." Tracy said this lightly, and the contrast with her earlier tone made the words all the more chilling.  
  
Alan was walking to breakfast with Dillon, and they had heard Tracy from the foyer. Alan assumed this was just Tracy blustering.  
  
"Tracy, I already consider Skye my daughter." Alan's voice was firm.  
  
"That's unfortunate for her. Now, I have business to attend to." Tracy turned to go.  
  
Alan shook his head in amazement at his sister's gall. What business did she have, besides trying to steal the Quartermaine treasure? hr Unlike Alexis, Faith would not be caught dead in something from IWyndham'sI. Before she had let Zander go, she had demanded his cell phone and made a call to several boutiques in New York City. Her wardrobe had been sent by overnight mail to the PCPD and for once someone had done their job right because first thing that morning the desk clerk had been overwhelmed by packages. Zander had been just in time to take the packages to Lorenzo's little hideaway, iron something appropriate, and return with an outfit for court.  
  
Unfortunately, not all of Faith's problems were that easy to fix. Her biggest problem was that her contact at the WSB had let things get this far to begin with. If Faith hadn't gotten hooked into the FBI she never would have found out about the WSB ties to organized crime. It was a wink and nod relationship that provided protection from law enforcement for those lucky enough to operate under WSB protection. The WSB gained a stable governing force over illegal activities along with the kind of funding they couldn't dream of getting from an increasingly tight-fisted congress, not a penny of which had to be accounted for.  
  
It was with their blessing that she had taken out the heads of the Five Families. The Families had thought they were powerful enough to cut the WSB out of the action. Faith knew better. Her handler recognized Faith as a woman of substance and the deal had been for as much territory as she could grab. Faith's men were locked in a battle for the five headless cities: Rochester, Buffalo, Toronto, Detroit, and Montreal. Port Charles would be the jewel in the crown of these, if she could take advantage of the turmoil Tracy had created. Soleto was going to wish he'd never heard the name Faith Rosco by the time she was done with him. She had left his little kingdom in New York City and New Jersey alone and this was the thanks she got?  
  
All of which brought her back to the WSB. It was in the WSB's interest to have a friend running organized crime, and Faith was more than willing to be friendly if it gave her her own territory. Of course, having friends in high places was supposed to immunize her from this sort of harassment. First they had let her get arrested, then they had told her to cut Lorenzo Alcazar in on the action. She was still pissed about that. She shouldn't have been in a position to need his help to begin with. She was starting to feel like a pawn in somebody's game, and she didn't like it. hr "Skye!" Dillon whispered as she walked past. He reached out and grabbed her arm and pulled her into the library.  
  
"Dillon, aren't you back at military school?"  
  
Dillon shushed her, looked both ways, and closed and locked the doors. Skye couldn't help wondering what the secrecy was about.  
  
Dillon shrugged. "I hid out until I missed my flight. You need to watch out for my mom, Skye."  
  
"Don't you think you're being a bit dramatic, Dillon?" Teenaged angst was probably at the root of this little chat.  
  
"You haven't been around long enough, Skye. My mom is serious."  
  
"What's she going to do? Kill me?" Dillon's heart was in the right place, but like all teenagers, he must be overestimating his mother's power.  
  
"Yeah, Skye. Do you know the name Soleto?"  
  
Skye frowned. "You mean the mobster in New York City?"  
  
"Yeah. My mom used to be married to him. I heard her on the phone with him last night. They set those explosions yesterday."  
  
Skye's brow furrowed. "Tracy did that?" Her voice was incredulous.  
  
Dillon wanted to shake Skye. She wasn't paying attention. "People think I'm joking when I say I have the mother from hell. I'm not. I heard her threaten you, Skye. She was serious."  
  
Skye stared at Dillon for a moment. "The lawyer took the adoption papers to the courthouse this morning."  
  
Dillon threw his arms up dramatically. "Are you getting this? My mom is going to kill you, Skye."  
  
"OK, OK, let's say I'm getting this. How do I get your mother off my back?"  
  
"You need help." hr "Bail is granted in the amount of three million dollars."  
  
Alexis smiled at Faith but her smile faltered in the face of Faith's disdain.  
  
"Now we can work on your defense."  
  
"Now I can get back to business," Faith said, and dismissed her without a thought as she approached Lorenzo.  
  
"Lorenzo. we need to meet." Faith eyed him like he was covered in whipped cream.  
  
Alexis cleared her throat. "I have some more business at the courthouse."  
  
"Of course. Two guards and a car have been placed at your disposal, Alexis," he said, liking the feel of her name in his mouth.  
  
"Thank you, Lorenzo." For that moment it was just the two of them, and Alexis flushed under his gaze. "Umm, I should be going."  
  
Faith rolled her eyes. "You do that. Buh-bye."  
  
Lorenzo turned his gaze on Faith. "You will show Miss Davis the respect she deserves."  
  
"Sounds like it's "Lorenzo" and "Alexis" now. How sweet." Faith's pose was defiant.  
  
Lorenzo stepped forward, invading her space. "You will respect all of my guests, Mrs. Rosco."  
  
She knew his proximity was meant to intimidate, but Faith thought only what a shame it was that such a sexy man had such piss-poor taste in women.  
  
"Right. Zander mentioned something about your houseguests. Are you running a homeless shelter for unwanted women?"  
  
Lorenzo looked down at Faith, his gaze thunderous. "I have offered my protection to certain guests. If you wish to reside at the compound, you will honor my wishes."  
  
Faith was unafraid, but she could see that there would be no moving him from his ridiculous role as protector of the innocent. "Fine. I'll leave the little women alone. Just remember, I'm not one of your guests to be condescended to. I'm your partner."  
  
"Don't make me regret that." hr Skye sat in the chair across from Dillon. Outwardly she was cool, but inside she wished that Luke was in town to take care of Tracy. Once upon a time she would have called Jax, but now Jax was with Sam, and in business with Tracy besides. "Why would Lorenzo Alcazar help me?" Skye asked, genuinely curious.  
  
Dillon pulled his cell phone out of his pocket. He didn't want to say that he hoped Lorenzo would do it for him. "You're a classy lady, Skye. Alcazar respects that."  
  
"Fine. I'll ask him."  
  
Dillon dialed the phone, waiting for Lorenzo to answer.  
  
"Alcazar."  
  
"It's Dillon. I need a favor."  
  
"Dillon, as I said yesterday, I think it is better if you don't get between your mother and I."  
  
"Yeah, I know. I'm going back to fucking military school to make sure my mom leaves Georgie alone. It's my cousin, Skye, who needs the favor."  
  
Lorenzo had not thought about Skye as Dillon's relation. Skye Chandler Quartermaine was a woman that Lorenzo had a great deal of respect for. Perhaps it was the way she carried herself, or the sudden flashes of vulnerability beneath her bravado. They had only spoken on a few occasions but other times their eyes had spoken for them.  
  
"Perhaps Ms Quartermaine should ask me herself." Lorenzo wondered if Skye would come to him, and if she did, what would happen between them.  
  
"OK, I'll put her on."  
  
Lorenzo was mildly surprised that Skye and Dillon were together.  
  
"Mr. Alcazar," Skye began hesitantly, but her natural grace shone through. "I would like to ask for your protection."  
  
Lorenzo considered her request. Dillon would not have called him if he did not believe that Skye was in jeopardy. He knew the toll the events of the day before had taken on the boy. It was simple enough to grant this request before sending him away to safety.  
  
Skye waited patiently through the silence. She suspected that a man like Lorenzo Alcazar would not suffer fools lightly, if at all. She was no fool. He could take as long as he liked to consider her request.  
  
"I will send a car for you. May I speak with Dillon again?"  
  
"Certainly."  
  
Skye smiled and passed the phone to Dillon.  
  
"Yeah?"  
  
Dillon sounded so young to Lorenzo, and Lorenzo knew what it was to learn that your parent was a cold-blooded killer.  
  
"You are doing the right thing, Dillon." hr Skye looked back over her shoulder at the Quartermaine mansion wondering if she should have left Alan a note. Then she caught sight of Tracy watching her from a second story window and quickly turned her attention back to the limo before her.  
  
The driver opened the door for her, but there was no one inside. It felt a little creepy to be sent for like this, but not as creepy as going out to the remote lake house would feel after what Dillon had told her.  
  
Then her cell phone rang. It was Luke. He wanted to meet at the wreck of the Haunted Star. There was something off about him, but Luke had been behaving oddly for the past few weeks. That must be it.  
  
Skye asked the driver to take her to the docks. She might be keeping Alcazar waiting, but somehow she wanted to get Luke's take on the situation before she jumped into anything. hr Faith had heard Lorenzo's side of the conversation, and she couldn't believe he was inviting yet another woman to the compound, let alone Skye. It wasn't that long since Faith had crossed swords with Skye, back during their fight over Ned and baby Kristina. Faith chuckled to herself. Lorenzo had no idea what he was in for, inviting Skye to live with Alexis and Kristina, and Faith was the last person who was going to fill him in. There was nothing Faith liked more than a good catfight, especially between two "ladies" like Alexis and Skye.  
  
Lorenzo heard Faith's chuckle and frowned.  
  
"Yes, Mrs. Rosco? Is there something you have to say?"  
  
"Oh, no, Lorenzo. I wouldn't want to spoil the surprise." Faith cocked her head to the side with a sly grin.  
  
"I don't like surprises. Especially from you," Lorenzo said impatiently.  
  
No surprises from me. I promise." The grin disappeared and Faith turned to walk toward the door. "I have a meeting to get to, and so do you. Who did you say you were meeting again?"  
  
"Probably no one, but I think it's worth taking the meeting just to make sure."  
  
"Just don't go collecting any more innocent little ladies in dire need of your protection while I'm gone." Faith disappeared with a wink, leaving Lorenzo to wonder what exactly she knew that he didn't. 


	6. Sam

Author's Note: For the purposes of this story, forget that Cody McCall ever interacted with Jax or Sam. A WSB agent in town is acting as the Cassadine butler, and his name is Cody, but that's as far as it goes. He never mentioned that he was a diver, so Nikolas never found somebody to dive for him or blow up his freighter.  
  
As a side note, believe it or not, people do dive in the Great Lakes in winter, but they wear what are called "dry suits" because they keep the diver completely dry, and the diver wears insulating layers beneath the suit. Every time I see Sam come out of the water wet, I want to yell at my TV. The only reason she's wearing a wetsuit is because a dry suit is baggy and not sexy in the least. hr They may call it salvage, but to Sam McCall it was all about buried treasure. Her earliest memories were of her father telling her about the Aztec gold that had sunk to the bottom of the ocean that was just waiting for them to find it. When they did, she'd be a princess, with a different dress every day instead of the cut-off shorts and grubby, too-small keds that she wore every day. Most importantly, who ever heard of a princess with no mommy? Day after day, Sam had dreamed about finding gold, and as she'd gotten older she'd learned that it didn't have to be gold to put some shiny new shoes on your feet. Lots of things were waiting beneath the water, waiting for someone to see their value and claim them.  
  
Sam's early memories were of sitting on the edge of her Dad's boat, little legs dangling overboard, watching the water go by. She'd never had a room growing up, just a place to bunk down for the night, folded up neatly the next morning and converted back into their dining room. For a while her dad would settle down and start a business and she'd go to school during the day, and do her homework on the dock while she waited for the boat to return that night. Then the call would come and they'd disappear in the middle of the night, bound for another port, another shore.  
  
Of course, it never occurred to her that maybe she should be living with her disapproving Aunt in Nova Scotia, and by the time it did, she had the sea in her blood. Her father would never have heard of it. Most of his cons required the sweet little girl to give him the appearance of a hard-working family man. By the time she was old enough to know better, she was a better con artist than he was. The boat was her home, and she was his luck. He always said so, and Sam believed it. Just when things looked bad, Sam had a way of finding the right man with the deep pockets, or even better, of finding the valuable wreck that had eluded them for weeks.  
  
It wasn't until she was older that she began to question the phone calls and the mysterious men that would send them scurrying for a new port, frequently with a new boat. In the end, it was only through eavesdropping on one of her father's meetings that she had learned of the WSB, and that her father really worked for them. Their life suddenly seemed more exciting and her father seemed larger than life- looking for treasure by day and spying by night. Sam wanted in on the life, and since a lifetime of training had prepared her for the deception required, the WSB had accepted her without question.  
  
Then had come the biggest shock of all. Her father wasn't her father. He was just an agent who had been assigned to look after her, to keep her on the move. Nothing she could say or do would induce her handler to tell her more about her parents. When Sam had progressed far enough in her training, she had hacked the WSB's computer system herself and had found that all of her records were sealed by a firewall that seemed impenetrable. Whoever her parents had been, Sam knew they had been important enough to the WSB to ensure her protection. hr Sam McCall was crouched over Jax's laptop, her senses alert for any sound from the hall.  
  
"I'm sending you the files as we speak."  
  
Jax had just left for his morning run, and Sam couldn't wait to be done with this assignment. She had been foolish enough to fall for Jax the first time round and her work had suffered. It was unfinished business that had forced her to come crawling back when Jax "forgave" her.  
  
Her one-day stint as vice president of Jax's company had given her access to the mainframe, but it hadn't taken her long to realize that Jax kept the good stuff on standalone computers, off-line, and therefore impossible to hack.  
  
She could have stayed on at J&J Jacks, but she didn't want to draw any attention to the fact that, despite her apparent interest in the salvage business, the real target was Jax's business.  
  
Sam had played her cover story and Jax had come through with another salvage boat. The WSB was always happy when her cover funded itself, and she'd been smart enough to make sure that the boat was 100% hers before she set foot on her.  
  
She'd been biding her time, playing salvage operator, while she waited for Jax to bring home something incriminating. There was plenty of circumstantial evidence that he had been laundering money for his brother again. The WSB wanted proof. Sam had almost given up.  
  
"Receipt confirmed, agent McCall."  
  
"Good. I'm ready to get the hell out of Port Charles."  
  
Sam had been on vacation when she'd run into Jax. The Dead Man's Hand had always been a fascination of hers, and her WSB work had given her the resources to track down its owner. It wasn't until after she'd fallen for Jax that she'd been called back to duty. She should have known better than to get involved with someone as high profile as Jax. Of course the WSB would want in.  
  
"Negative, McCall. Phone in for your next assignment before you leave town."  
  
Shit. She wanted to get as far away from Jax as she could get. She still loved the self-righteous bastard, but she hated him, too. She knew she was nothing more than a plaything to him, a pawn to feed his ego. It had pleased Sam to no end when she received her orders to make sure Corinthos walked on the kidnapping charge. Jax had been good enough to forgive her, even going so far as to buy her a salvage boat, but she knew his type. The gift came with strings: play by the rules and be a nice girl. Sam was no nice girl, but since her mission in Port Charles had grown, she'd needed the boat. What she hadn't needed was Jax butting in to her work and giving the treasure away to Cassadine and the Quartermaines.  
  
The WSB was after bigger treasure, namely the Ice Princess, but she was supposed to turn over the proceeds from the "Courage" to finance the search. Apparently, it served the WSB's interests to keep both the Quartermaine and the Cassadine families from acquiring the capital the treasure would provide. In the past week it had been getting harder and harder to keep Jax off her back about the treasure. Thank God she'd gotten lucky. The Ice Princess had been swept down against the wreckage of the Courage and she'd found it two days ago. The best part was that Jax didn't have a clue.  
  
Sam packed up her things and left Jax a note. Once she had her clothes and the treasure packed into her truck, she called in by satellite phone as instructed. The files downloaded to her computer as she listened to her orders. Sam raised her eyebrows in surprise. It seemed that Skye Chandler Quartermaine had friends in high places. hr Sam followed Skye Quartermaine from the estate to the docks. It was amazing the things that a WSB techie with a voice sample could do. Skye actually believed that it had been Luke on the phone asking to meet her at the wreck of the Haunted Star. The timing had to be just perfect on this one. Sam had no backup plan for convincing Skye and Alcazar to be roomies at the compound/hotel he was apparently running.  
  
Sam was early for her meeting with Lorenzo Alcazar and the duffle bag was much heavier than she'd anticipated. She checked in with the other agent in town, Cody, to ensure that he was in position.  
  
When Alcazar was about twenty feet away, Sam started walking toward him, ensuring that she would pass close to Skye.  
  
The shot rang out and almost instantly the wooden pylon in front of them threw up splinters of wood.  
  
Skye jumped and stared at the hole created by the bullet's exit. "Down." Sam called, then swung her duffle bag to knock Skye down and grabbed her, hauling her towards the benches in a huddle. Another shot rang out and a hole appeared midway between the two of them and Alcazar. Sam was grateful that she knew what a good shot Cody was, or she might genuinely be worried.  
  
Skye was going to have a bruise where the bag had hit her. "What do you have in that thing? Bowling balls?" Sam ignored her, looking around for the shooter.  
  
Lorenzo had also ducked for cover about ten feet away from them. His two guards scanned the rooftop for the shooter as he made a crouching run towards the two women.  
  
"Anybody want to kill you, Skye, or was that for me?" Sam asked urgently.  
  
Skye looked shocked. "Tracy. " Skye said, and Sam could see she was considering the possibility.  
  
Lorenzo looked hard at Sam. Her reactions had been very quick, and her question left open the possibility that she was the target. And then there was the fact that she had called him for a meeting. That alone said that she was up to something illegal.  
  
Sam glanced from Alcazar back to Skye. "What a coincidence. Tracy seems more likely than the Cassadines to me."  
  
Skye looked at the bag. "You've stolen the treasure."  
  
"I didn't steal it. I'm the one who found it, Skye. And what do you care? You're loaded." Sam shot back.  
  
Lorenzo couldn't believe what he was witnessing. The two women were about to get into an argument over "treasure" when someone was shooting at them.  
  
"Does Jax know about this?" Skye scolded.  
  
"I knew you had a thing for him." Sam was doing her best to keep this discussion petty. Let Alcazar do the thinking for the three of them.  
  
One of the men signaled that the limo was waiting on the other side of the stairs.  
  
Lorenzo cleared his throat. Skye looked at him, actually noticing him for the first time. "Perhaps this conversation should be continued in my car. It is waiting just up there."  
  
Skye scowled. "Are you sure it's safe?"  
  
"My men saw the shooter. They can provide covering fire if he appears again."  
  
Sam nodded. "I'm game. It's better than being pinned down here."  
  
Skye looked between the two of them- dodging bullets was not part of her repertoire. "Why don't we just call the police and wait for help." Her forehead was knotted in worry. Where were the cops when you needed them?  
  
"No cops for me," Sam said, and popped her head up over the wooden half- wall for a peek.  
  
"Says the thief," Skye retorted.  
  
Two more of Lorenzo's men showed up brandishing weapons. "I can leave a man here with you. Miss McCall and I have business to discuss."  
  
"Oh, no. You're not leaving me here," Skye protested.  
  
"Fine then. On three." Lorenzo said, knowing that Skye would continue to worry about the right thing to do unless forced to act.  
  
The three of them scurried up the stairs to the alley where the car was waiting. Sirens wailed in the distance. Skye scrambled into the back of the limo, followed by Sam and Lorenzo. Lorenzo managed to avoid tripping over Sam's duffle and seated himself across from the two ladies. The car accelerated away from the scene.  
  
Lorenzo allowed himself a few breaths. Skye looked at Sam and opened her mouth to speak, but Lorenzo interrupted what he suspected would be another accusation.  
  
"So we've established that Tracy Quartermaine has reason to shoot either of you."  
  
Sam looked thoughtful. "You first, Skye. Tracy threatened you?"  
  
"Alan is planning to adopt me. She said I wouldn't live to see the day I was a Quartermaine. But she just said that this morning."  
  
Lorenzo's gaze was piercing. "Tracy threatened you this morning, Ms Quartermaine. And you, Ms McCall, does Tracy know that you have her "treasure".  
  
Sam shook her head. "I don't see how. I mean, we had a deal, but nobody saw me. find it or bring it up. I do have something Helena Cassadine would kill for, but the same thing goes. It would be easier to just take it from me."  
  
"So both Tracy Quartermaine and Helena Cassadine have reason to want you dead," Lorenzo surmised.  
  
Sam looked closer at Lorenzo's shirt, then leaned across and poked his chest. "You're wearing Kevlar. You must think somebody's out to get you."  
  
Lorenzo was amused by her impertinence. "I'm simply being cautious. I'm fairly certain that one of you was the target."  
  
Sam waited impatiently while Lorenzo considered what to do with them.  
  
"I think I will meet with each of you individually once we reach the compound," Lorenzo said at last. He had planned to invite Skye to live at the compound, but he wasn't sure he wanted to make the same offer to Sam. There was something about her that wasn't quite genuine. hr Lorenzo shook Skye's hand gently. "Then it's settled. You will stay here. Dillon will be pleased."  
  
"I appreciate your generosity," Skye said, brushing aside her memories of Luis. Lorenzo was nothing like his brother.  
  
Lorenzo nodded in acknowledgement of her thanks. "Let me show you to your room."  
  
As they walked into the kitchen, Skye saw Elizabeth Lansing letting Kristina down from a high chair.  
  
"Kristina." Skye was breathless at the sight of her little baby walking. She had been her mother for a few treasured months, what Skye felt would be her only chance at motherhood. And here was her darling baby, close enough to touch.  
  
Kristina looked up and saw Skye. She ran over to her with her arms up. "Up! Up!"  
  
Skye picked Kristina up with tears welling in her eyes. "Why, look what a big girl you are, sweetheart."  
  
Lorenzo watched as Kristina patted Skye's cheek with her free hand, then grabbed a handful of Skye's hair and shoved it in her mouth. The child obviously knew Skye, but it took Lorenzo a moment to remember that Skye had been involved in the custody suit.  
  
Elizabeth had heard rumors about Skye's involvement with Ned and Kristina. She thought the custody fight had been bitter. What would Alexis think about Skye holding her daughter? Elizabeth thought that perhaps she should take the baby back, but the look on Skye's face was just heartbreaking and she couldn't bring herself to do it.  
  
Skye held Kristina close and ran her fingers down Kristina's cheek. She felt Kristina's compact weight in her arms and smelled the perfect baby smell of her heartbreakingly soft skin. She ran her fingers over the soft spot on the top of Kristina's head and felt her pulse through her now thick hair. Her hair had grown so much since Skye had let her go- she looked almost like a toddler now. "I missed you, my darling girl," Skye said softly, and she choked on the last word.  
  
She caught the look on Elizabeth's face and realized that Alexis would make a scene if she saw this. Skye wondered if she dared hold Kristina much longer, or if Alexis would arrive to rip her out of her arms. She knew that she couldn't bear it if that happened.  
  
"Here. You should take her," Skye said to Elizabeth, offering Kristina back to her. They untangled Skye's hair from Kristina's fist and Elizabeth settled the baby on her hip.  
  
Elizabeth bounced Kristina lightly. "Say bye bye, Kristina."  
  
Skye's gave Kristina a brave smile and a goodbye wave, but the tears continued down her cheeks.  
  
"Bye. Bye. Bye." Kristina chanted, waving her arm.  
  
It was too much, and Skye suddenly felt a hand on her elbow, guiding her into the next room.  
  
Skye stopped and looked out the window, trying to wipe the tears from her face. What must Lorenzo think of her, to be so undone by someone else's child? "I haven't seen her since." Skye's throat constricted and she felt Lorenzo take her in his arms. She could have held herself together if he hadn't acknowledged her pain. Somehow the implicit offer of understanding was too much and a cry tore itself from her throat. Her arms tentatively moved around his waist and she held on tightly, trying not to sob.  
  
Lorenzo's hand smoothed her hair and he said softly, "It's all right." A sob wracked her body, and another, and Lorenzo wondered how many nights Skye had already cried for the child.  
  
Skye took a deep breath, held it, and let it out slowly. Her chest hitched lightly and she did it again. She had to stop. She couldn't turn into a whimpering mess at the sight of Kristina or she would never survive living here.  
  
Then Skye had dropped her arms and was fumbling in her purse for a tissue. Lorenzo released her and took a step back, giving her space to compose herself.  
  
"There was an accident. I can't have children of my own. I didn't know I wanted children," Skye said, by way of explanation. "I let myself fall in love with her. I should have known better."  
  
Lorenzo couldn't listen to Skye berate herself. "The love you gave her was not wasted. Kristina is a happy and well-adjusted baby, in spite of everything that has happened during her brief life. You deserve some credit for that."  
  
Skye gave Lorenzo a wry half-smile through her tears. "I doubt Alexis would thank me."  
  
Lorenzo wiped an errant tear from her cheek. "You didn't do it for Alexis. You did it for Kristina."  
  
Skye let the truth of this sink in.  
  
"I must look a mess," she said at last.  
  
"Come," Lorenzo said, taking her elbow and guiding her toward the stairs. "There is a lovely suite upstairs." He had planned on keeping the upstairs to himself, but obviously it would not do to put Skye too close to Alexis and the baby. hr Lorenzo felt odd, leaving Skye to her heartbreak, but there was nothing more he could do. Now he had business to attend to. Sam McCall was waiting in the room next to his office.  
  
When he entered, Sam was wearing a beautiful antique diamond necklace that she had not been wearing before.  
  
"I see you have been perusing your treasure."  
  
"It doesn't quite go with the leather," she joked, referring to her leather pants and jacket.  
  
"Marco said we had business to discuss?" he asked, knowing that she probably wanted him to arrange to fence the treasure.  
  
"You know we've met before, although I doubt you will remember it. Christmas of 1998. I was with Luis. There was a speedboat incident." Sam had no trouble remembering the year. Getting inside Luis Alcazar's operation had been a harrowing assignment.  
  
"Ah, yes. Luis insisted on taking father out in his new boat." Lorenzo smiled at the memory.  
  
"He did it on purpose, of course. I'd shown him that trick, of raising a trail of spray and then skidding back underneath it. Your father looked like he thought he was going to die."  
  
"And he was completely soaked. I'd never seen the old man so angry." Lorenzo laughed softly. It was good to laugh with someone about his brother. No one had had a kind word to say about Luis since Lorenzo had come to Port Charles.  
  
Sam was laughing, too, at the memory. "You know you really do look like him. like he did. I'm sorry for your loss."  
  
And there it was. The first time someone in this town had expressed regret over his brother's fate. There was something about this girl, something he could almost remember. but it was gone.  
  
"Thank you. Luis was not popular here," he said, and the feeling was back. "Did you and Luis part on good terms?" The question was something of a trap. Luis did not have the knack for ending relationships gracefully.  
  
"Oh," Sam said, trying to phrase this as gracefully as possible. "Not exactly. You see Luis saved me from going to jail in Namibia, in a way. I was grateful. We had fun. But I'd lived my whole life on boats, not yachts, and I'm used to going where the wind takes me."  
  
Lorenzo knew his brother and could see where the story was going. There was an awkward moment, but it passed. Luis had his faults, and death did not change that.  
  
Sam had not been planning to tell Lorenzo the truth, but she had good instincts for when the truth might be easier than a lie. "Luis. was not ready to part company. He had my passport. I took some diamonds, in trade, and swam for a fishing boat. We were in South African waters, and I speak Afrikaner. It was easy to get them to drop me at the nearest harbor." Sam was smiling again. "I had my little diamond adventure and ended up back in the salvage business."  
  
"So you stole from Luis," Lorenzo said frankly, remembering that the woman had come here to do business.  
  
"Yes. Someone recently called me a pirate. I think that's about right." Sam reached into the bag, fishing for something.  
  
Sam held out the goblet. "I don't really think a pawn shop is the right place for a jewel encrusted cup."  
  
"No. Neither am I in the business of disposing of stolen goods," Lorenzo said firmly.  
  
Sam tried not to roll her eyes. He might not have been before, but if he was going to run this territory, he was going to be taking a cut from the local fencing operations. Of course, all this was supposed to be a mystery to her.  
  
"I run a salvage operation. I know the laws. Nikolas Cassadine has no right to that treasure, and the Quartermaines have no way to prove that the treasure even came from the Courage, not to mention that family legend of a three hundred year old ship does not constitute ownership."  
  
Lorenzo felt that her rationalizations rang false. "The Cassadines and the Quartermaines would disagree with you."  
  
"Let them. They cry about being broke, but everything I own is in this room. Besides, the treasure is just the icing on the cake. I have something that Helena Cassadine would crawl across broken glass to get her hands on, and it has nothing to do with the freighter or the Courage."  
  
Sam pulled the Ice Princess out of the bag and handed it to Lorenzo.  
  
Lorenzo felt the weight of the object and frowned. It was heavier than crystal, but there was no way it was what he thought it was.  
  
"That right there is over 1500 carats of uncut grade F or better diamond. The inclusions you see run along a single vein and the rest of the diamond is remarkably free from inclusions."  
  
Lorenzo understood. A diamond of that size would be impossible to sell without alerting the Cassadines. It would have to be cut, and the resulting gems sold.  
  
"So, what do you propose?" Lorenzo found himself wondering what kind of businesswoman she was.  
  
"I'm a salvage captain. I provide raw materials to wholesalers. I don't have the connections to move diamonds. Boats, scrap iron, fittings, you name it. I've got a guy who will buy them. Gems are out of my league. But they aren't out of yours, are they, Mr. Alcazar."  
  
"My brother talked too much." Lorenzo found himself annoyed that this girl knew about his business.  
  
"I'm a harbor rat. I grew up on boats, and I've bought or bartered for supplies in harbors all over the world. You hear things, like how illegally mined diamonds are bartered for guns. Your brother was an arms dealer in a resort on the Namibian border with Angola. That's the illegal diamond capital of the world. He didn't have to tell me a thing about his business that I couldn't guess on my own.  
  
Lorenzo looked at Sam in a new light. He had initially taken her for a small time thief and con artist. Then he remembered her as a bit of fluff that his brother had had fun with. Now he was beginning to see her as far more worldly than her unpretentious attitude had lead him to suspect.  
  
"Standard salvage rates. 50%. I provide the raw materials. You have it cut and sold."  
  
The deal was fair. She wasn't negotiating hard enough. "75-25. You will receive nothing but a finder's fee if you try to handle the transaction yourself," he said, his eyes glittering with challenge.  
  
Sam didn't bite. She wasn't going to play games with a man whose couch cost more than her car.  
  
"Not a chance. I've come to you with an offer that is more than fair because, beyond a certain point, money doesn't interest me, but I won't be taken advantage of. I'm the one who made the initial investment in diving equipment. I'm the one who dove in near-freezing water. All of the up-front labor and expenses were mine. So are half the proceeds." Lorenzo did not need time to consider it. There was no risk in it to him. It was a fair offer. His attempt at negotiation had been purely a test of Sam's will. "You have a deal."  
  
Sam's face cracked open into a smile again and she shook his hand. "All right."  
  
Even when the WSB took their cut, she'd get a percentage. She was finally going to have some real money.  
  
Lorenzo found himself smiling back at Sam.  
  
"And you have to keep me safe until the diamonds are cut and we find out exactly what that baby is worth," Sam said, almost as an afterthought. In fact, this was the whole purpose of their meeting.  
  
This seemed only logical to Lorenzo. They wouldn't know what the diamond was worth until it was cut.  
  
"Let me show you to your room." 


	7. Fireworks

Author's Note: Forget about Jason catching Johnny. I want to put more men in the mix, and it's easier to use characters you already have a mental picture of, so Johnny and Max have gone to work for Lorenzo and Faith. hr Johnny stood watch over the car and the courthouse, waiting for Miss Davis to finish her business inside. He'd had an early and very busy morning. Acting on a tip, Alcazar had had just about every man who was on his payroll crawling all over the courthouse before Mrs. Rosco's release. Johnny and Max had found one shooter waiting on the roof of the building across the street, and another team had caught sight of a second shooter waiting in an abandoned apartment in the next building over. Both shooters were now dead, just two of the growing number of deaths on both sides that had occurred since Soleto's men had shown up in the city. This was a dangerous time to be in the business, and Johnny and Max had been assigned the riskier posts. All those years of seniority with Corinthos meant nothing now. He was back on the bottom rung. The only upside was that Alcazar paid better than Corinthos had. hr Alexis finished her business at the courthouse feeling a bit foolish about the guard that was following her around and was just grateful that it wasn't two men. When she returned to the car, she found that Johnny had been keeping an eye on the building and the car while she was inside. Even during the short time when Sonny had kept a guard on her, there had been only one guard who also acted as the driver. Apparently, Lorenzo was a belt and suspenders kind of guy when it came to security. "Hello, Johnny. It's nice to see you again," Alexis said brightly as Johnny opened the door for her. "It's nice to see you, too, Miss Davis." Johnny closed the door and was gone, back on the other side of the divider. Alexis couldn't help wondering how Johnny had come to be working for Lorenzo. Although, when she thought about it, she supposed that he had to work somewhere now that Sonny was gone, and Lorenzo was probably hiring. Then it hit her. Sonny was gone. She no longer needed to be afraid of Ned. She couldn't help but feel a certain sadness for her daughter. Kristina's biological father was dead and the man her mother had Ichosen/I to be her father had betrayed her, denying her months of her mother's love. Just because Ned had done the right thing in the end didn't change the months of anguish he had caused her. She would never forgive him. Alexis realized that she could demand another paternity test and challenge Ned's claim to be Kristina's father. Unfortunately, the case law was not in her favor. Courts were in the business of declaring paternity, not nullifying it. Without an alternate candidate to replace Ned's name on Kristina's birth certificate, the courts would simply accede to his wishes.  
  
Alexis sighed. She would deal with Ned later. Now she had more important things to worry about. Upon her return to the compound, Alexis found Elizabeth playing with Kristina in the garden. The mother in her suddenly worried about the unfenced pool and the possibility that Kristina might drown. "How's my girl?" Alexis said, leaning down so Kristina could walk forward into her arms. Elizabeth had been worrying about this moment all afternoon. She had eavesdropped on Skye and Lorenzo in the next room and knowing that Skye had genuinely loved Kristina and would never have children of her own made Elizabeth feel awful for her. She knew she had to let Alexis know that Skye was living with them, but she hated to be the catalyst for the confrontation that she feared would follow. "Elizabeth? Are you all right?" Alexis could see that Elizabeth was tired and worried. Elizabeth forced a smile. "I'm fine. Gia watched Kristina for an hour so I could take a nap. I've been so tired lately." Alexis nodded. "When I was pregnant, I'd have these sudden tired spells. You really do need more sleep now." Elizabeth grimaced. "I hardly got any last night." What little sleep she'd gotten before Ric and Tracy woke her up hadn't done her much good, and she hadn't been able to fall asleep once she arrived at the compound with Zander. Fortunately, Zander had taken her by Kelly's to pick up her toiletries and what maternity clothes she had bought. She wasn't in the same position as Alexis and Gia, both of whom were dying to make a run for hair and skin products. Alexis was concerned. "I'll take care of Kristina now. You need to go and get some sleep." Elizabeth looked relieved. "That would be great." Alexis turned to go take Kristina inside. Elizabeth reached out a hand to stop her. "I figure you should know that we have two new guests. Skye Quartermaine and a girl named Sam McCall." Alexis's jaw dropped. Of all the people for Lorenzo to bring here, Skye was quite possibly at the bottom of her list, right ahead of Edward. "Please tell me you're kidding." Alexis's brain was working overtime, trying to think of another place they could stay on short notice. Kristina started to fuss in her arms in reaction to her mother's mood. "No, I'm serious." Elizabeth hoped Alexis's silence was a sign that she was O.K. with this. "Did she touch Kristina?" Alexis snapped. There was no way in hell Alexis was going to work all day knowing that Skye was playing mommy to her daughter again. "Kristina recognized her and ran to her. But Skye gave her back to me." Alexis was furious. She was angry that Kristina had cause to recognize Skye Quartermaine at all. Alexis was convinced that if Skye hadn't been whispering in Ned's ear, he would have done the right thing and returned her daughter to her a lot sooner. There was no way Skye was going near Kristina. "Can you watch Kristina for a few more minutes? I have a few things to say to Skye." Elizabeth's forehead knotted. "She's not here. She took a car to go get her things. Apparently someone was shooting at her on the docks today." "It's too bad they missed," Alexis snapped. hr Faith and Zander walked into Lorenzo's warehouse after their guards gave the all-clear. Faith took a look around, thinking that with just a few renovations, it could be their new headquarters. "I want a team inside the Morgan-Corinthos coffee warehouse tonight. Let's see if there are any records left." Sonny may not have been into drugs or prostitution, but that still left loansharking, extortion, bribery, stolen cars, illegal guns, fencing, arson for hire, and illegally obtained government contracts, just to name a few. If she was going to take over the territory, she needed to know who owed money and what they had on each and every person who had illegal dealings in the city. Corinthos and Morgan had been taking a cut of all of it. Now that money, and more importantly that power, needed to fall into her hands. Faith listed off the things the warehouse would need to Zander, who was busy trying to write on a notebook he was barely holding in the hand of his broken arm. When she was done, she was ready to go back to Lorenzo's little love nest for dinner, before she began her evening rounds of visits to the city's purveyors of less savory services. "Um. Faith?" Zander had been putting this off all day, knowing exactly how well this would go over. "Yes?" Faith said impatiently. "Spit it out, Zander, I don't bite. hard." "Elizabeth Lansing is staying at the compound." "What the hell does Lorenzo want with little miss priss?" Zander decided to throw out a bone for Faith to chew on before he gave her the real news. "Ric is in Tracy's pocket. Elizabeth heard them talking last night. Tracy told him to let you walk so they could nail you when you walked outside. That's where this morning's tip came from." Faith was quick as a whip to guess what the scenario had been: Elizabeth's life had probably been hostage to Ric's cooperation. "I'll have to thank the little brat for selling out her husband," Faith said, then grabbed Zander's chin. "What aren't you telling me." "Elizabeth is pregnant with my kid. That's why she came to me." Faith stepped closer to Zander, then grabbed him by the balls. "Are you trying to tell me that you brought her into this without consulting me first? That Iyou/I made this Alcazar's business?" Zander stood frozen in agony. He nodded silently. Faith gave a vicious little twist before releasing him. Zander managed not to scream and tried not to double over but couldn't stop himself. This was not going well. "She needed someplace to hide in the middle of the night. The hotels are full." Faith couldn't believe Zander had the nerve to try and explain himself. "Do you really think I give a damn about wittle wizzie's problems?" "She's carrying my kid," Zander groaned. "So you knocked up another man's wife. Pay for a fucking abortion." Zander looked up at Faith with narrowed eyes. "No. That's not how this is going to go down. Elizabeth's going to have the baby." Faith slapped Zander hard across the face. "You don't shit without my O.K., Zander." They both knew this wasn't true. Zander was both fearless and unpredictable, two things that normally turned Faith on. "I won't leave Elizabeth twisting in the wind, Faith. You can accept it, or I can quit." Faith slapped Zander's other cheek hard enough to split his lip. "So now you think you can tell me what to do? Who gives the orders around here, Zander?" "You do, Faith," Zander answered grudgingly. He just hoped that Faith was taking out her anger on him and wouldn't subject Elizabeth to it. "That's right, Zander. Remember it." Faith looked around. The inside guard was pointedly not looking at either of them. "We're out of here." Faith started toward the door. "Are you coming, Zander?" Zander knew that she was done venting. This was a good sign. Chances were fair that she would accept Elizabeth's presence in his life, as long as it didn't interfere with their extracurricular activities. "Yes, Faith." Zander answered, struggling to stay upright as he walked Faith to the car. hr Skye had spent the afternoon recovering from her reunion with Kristina. She had even had a good cry, remembering her Princess Brat. That nickname would have to be her little secret now, and somehow that made Skye even more maudlin. Not that she would show her weakness again; after some visine and make-up, she was almost good as new. Skye breezed into the living room as two guards struggled with suitcases behind her. "First bedroom on the left upstairs, boys." Alexis was sitting in the shadows waiting for Skye to return. As Skye was putting he sunglasses in her purse, Alexis spoke. "Skye. I understand that we will both be living at the compound and I want to be absolutely clear about one thing." Skye rolled her eyes as Alexis spoke. "Wait. If you're going to get all macho with me, shouldn't you be wearing your moustache?"  
  
Alexis ignored the barb. She was going to make her position absolutely clear to Skye. "Keep your baby-stealing hands off my daughter" Gia and Elizabeth had been in the kitchen snacking on the hors d'ouerves Esmerelda had prepared, but with a nod between them, they snuck over to the doorway to listen to the fight. "Now will she always be your daughter, or will you be pulling out your red wig and playing her auntie, too?" Gia looked at Elizabeth and mouthed, "Score." "Don't pretend to be worried when you're the one who proved that it was all a ruse." "Did it ever occur to you that you did a disservice to people with real mental illnesses when you faked crazy to get out of a murder charge?" "I was innocent." Skye scoffed. "So instead of proving your innocence using the justice system you are sworn to uphold, you make a mockery of it?" "I did what I had to do." "And you blame Ned for believing your lie? For protecting his child from her insane mother?" "No, Skye. I blame you. Ned never would have cut me out of Kristina's life unless you pushed him to do it." "Do you know why? I grew up with a mother who was in and out of insane asylums. It's not something a child gets over. Why wouldn't you want better for Kristina, if you really were crazy?" "And you think you count as "better"?" "I was a good mother to Kristina. Just look at her." Lorenzo had seen the women fighting through the windows from his office across the courtyard. He entered the kitchen and spoke to Esmerelda in Spanish. "What is happening?" Esmerelda smiled a knowing smile. "You know, my English must not be so good. I think one of them was accusing the other of being a transvestite. The other one said to keep her baby stealing hands off the baby. Then there was something about not wanting the baby to grow up with a crazy mother. They are really going at it." Lorenzo nodded. "I will require dinner for two in my quarters." Esmerelda nodded and Lorenzo went to intervene, but neither of the women acknowledged his presence. "What Kristina knows about love, she learned from Ned and I, not you, Skye. No one who has the slightest clue about motherhood would separate a mother from her baby." "Only someone who actually gave a damn about Kristina would understand protecting her from an insane mother." "But I'm perfectly sane, and you knew that and kept Kristina from me anyway. You didn't give a damn about what was best for Kristina. You just wanted a child of your own. Just because through some kind of cosmic justice you can't inflict your brand of "motherhood" on your own child doesn't mean you should try to steal somebody else's." "Enough!" Lorenzo shouted at last. Both women looked at him, shocked to see him there. "Nobody is stealing anybody's child. What's done is done." Skye backed off immediately. This hadn't been a fight she wanted to have, and she didn't want to alienate Lorenzo. In fact, she planned to make herself indispensable to him. Alexis was still out for blood. "You can't possibly expect me to allow her near my daughter." Lorenzo gave Alexis an amused look. "If you would prefer, you and your daughter can move to the east wing. With Mrs. Rosco." Alexis blanched. Skye was infuriating, but she would never harm Kristina. Faith, on the other hand, reminded Alexis of Helena. There was no way she wanted her daughter anywhere near her. Alexis found that her anger had spilled over to Lorenzo as well. "I would prefer Skye to stay the hell away from my daughter." "Kristina is always in the company of a caregiver. I am certain that if you make your wishes known, contact between them can be minimized. However, as we are all sharing living space, it is unrealistic to believe that you can prevent all contact between Ms Quartermaine and your daughter." "I can damn well try," Alexis said angrily. Lorenzo shrugged. "That is your prerogative," Lorenzo said, and turned to Skye. Taking her elbow, he led her towards the stairs and away from Alexis. "Ms Quartermaine, would you have dinner with me in my quarters at seven?" "I'd be delighted to," Skye said, ignoring Alexis's glare and proceeding upstairs. Alexis fumed. Lorenzo's attitude infuriated her. Worse, he was apparently taken in by Skye. Alexis found herself remembering when Skye had orchestrated Lorenzo's appearance at the Quartermaine mansion during her visitation. What other relationship had the two had? She remembered the attraction she had been feeling with disgust. "Alexis." Lorenzo began. "I hope that there are no hard feelings." "Why should there be? You only came in and called a halt to our discussion. I just love it when a man tells me to shut up." "That was not my intention. I merely wanted to put an end to your "discussion" before either of you said anything that would make it impossible for you to live in the same house with some semblance of harmony." "Oh, you're a great champion of harmony, aren't you," Alexis said sarcastically. "Within my home, yes, I am. I am certain that some sort of compromise can be achieved between you and Ms Quartermaine. It will require you to put aside your animosity for the good of your daughter." "Don't you dare bring my daughter into this." "Very well, then for the well-being of the other residents of the compound." Alexis hated this, and hated him for putting her in this position, but she didn't hate it as much as she feared Helena. Only a fool would ignore the attempt on the lives of herself and her daughter. "Fine. I think I'll have a drink before dinner," Alexis said, excusing herself from the conversation. She knew she needed to calm down. She was still itching for a fight, but she knew she needed to choose the time and place more carefully. hr an hour later. Esmerelda had prepared a veritable feast for them. Kristina was up from her nap and attacking her food with enthusiasm. Zander and Elizabeth were discussing her pregnancy, and Alexis and Gia were discussing Faith's case, while trying to see that Isome/I of Kristina's food actually made it to her mouth. Sam was eating quietly, getting a feel for the group dynamics. Faith had decided to try and grab a plate of food without being sucked into some kind of communal dining hell. Esmerelda graciously offered to serve her meals in her quarters from then on, and as Faith waited for her food, she found herself drawn to the dining room, almost as she might be drawn to a car accident. "Here comes the airplane." "So I'm actually nauseous most of the day." "They never covered that in criminal procedure." "Oh, I just hurt my. back." This was just Itoo/I funny for words. The intellectual level of conversation at Lorenzo's table had taken a cataclysmic drop. Faith breezed in and laid her hand on the back of Zander's chair. "So, I see that you started without me. And where is our gracious host? Has he abandoned his wayward women to dine alone?" Conversation had come to a dead halt. Looking around the table, it hit Faith. Lorenzo had assembled a harem. Her laugh rang out. "You all must be the harem. and Zander, that makes you the eunuch," Faith said, running her hand over Zander's hair possessively. "But where is the almighty man of the house? Oh, wait, it seems that one of the little wives is missing. Hmmm. What Icould/I they be doing?" Alexis bridled at the assertion that she was a member of some. harem. "If this is a harem, then you're living in it, too, Faith." "Oh, gee. You're right. I guess that makes me the first wife. the one from whom you should all cower in fear." Gia piped up, "Yeah, when hell freezes over." Faith looked her over. "Oooh, the feisty one. For when Lorenzo wants it rough." Gia glared. "I'll show you rough." Baby Kristina started to fuss. "I'll let you get back to tending the baby, tiger. Don't have too much fun without me." Faith walked back to the kitchen, listening to Zander talk Gia down. Good. They all knew who was Ireally/I in charge. Sam watched Faith leave and wished there was a way she could follow Faith without alienating the entire table. The whole meal was too Norman Rockwell for a sailor's blood, and she needed to find a way to get close to Faith. hr in the meantime. Skye had changed for dinner. She was wearing a sexy little dress in her favorite shade of lavender. She walked down the hallway and found a door open and opera music playing softly in the background. There was a sitting room adjacent to Lorenzo's bedroom, where a table for two was set. The only thing it lacked was dimmed lights. Skye wondered if Lorenzo was trying to seduce her, or if she was going to have to do all the work. Skye was running her hand along the back of her chair when Lorenzo came in. He was without his suit jacket and the collar of his shirt was open. Skye couldn't help but notice that his shirt was the color of freshly-picked blueberries, a color that made his eyes appear almost cobalt blue. "I thought that after the tensions of today, that you might prefer a private dinner to dining with the group," Lorenzo said, pulling out Skye's chair so she could sit. "It's a lovely end to a very long day," Skye said, laying her napkin in her lap. Lorenzo went to pour Skye some wine but she held up her hand. "I don't drink, but I don't mind if you do." Coming from a woman of Skye's breeding, Lorenzo assumed that she was alcoholic and put the wine aside rather than drink in front of her. "No, it's a lovely wine. I think I'll save it for another time," Lorenzo said smoothly, seating himself across from Skye. "Shall we see what Esmerelda has prepared for us?" Skye took the cover off her plate. Lorenzo interpreted. "I believe we have a Sicilian menu.some kind of rustic soup, pasta with eggplant, artichokes, and bell peppers, and grilled shark with pesto trapanese." "It looks delicious." "Esmerelda is a very good cook. With this many guests, I am certain that she prepared a chicken dish as well, if you prefer." "No. This is perfect," Skye said, taking a bite of her pasta. "Very well," Lorenzo said with satisfaction. Skye tried a bite of the shark and found it delicious. When she had finished chewing, she broached the subject of Alexis. "After our last encounter, I was surprised to find Alexis here." "Alexis is an excellent attorney. I can provide a safe haven for her, and she can ensure that Mrs. Rosco and I are not burdened by the attentions of the local police." Skye nodded. "I see. I am more than willing to put aside my personal biases for the sake of peace in the household." "I appreciate that." "I feel like I should explain, about Kristina." "No explanation is required, but as you wish." "My adoptive mother was insane. She was in and out of asylums throughout my childhood. I know the damage having a crazy mother can do. When I believed that Alexis was insane, I pushed Ned to keep Alexis away from Kristina. I truly believed it was in her best interests." "And by the time you had uncovered her deception, you already loved Kristina. I, too, have gone to extraordinary lengths to have the one I loved." "Then you understand my loss," Skye said softly. Lorenzo covered Skye's hand with his own. "I understand that you are still in pain, and that living with Kristina will be bittersweet and will probably prolong that pain." "But I can't help myself. Seeing her is the only joy in my life right now." "I understand better than you might think." hr After dinner, Sam headed straight for the bar in the living room and poured herself three fingers of whiskey. "The company was that dull, eh," Gia said with a chuckle. Gia poured herself a brandy. "I'm a hard drinking, hard living salvage captain," Sam said, repeating a line she had used on Jax. "I don't know how long I'll be able to take all this togetherness." "How does a hard drinking, hard living salvage captain hook up with Jasper Jacks?" "Not very happily. Jax likes to pretend he lives life on the edge, but those millions are an awfully big cushion to fall back on. You must know what I mean. Didn't you used to be engaged to Nikolas Cassadine?" "Yes. That feels like another lifetime now," Gia said thoughtfully. "So you've already rebounded," Sam said knowingly. "Oh, yeah. I rebounded hard, right into Zander." Sam smiled at Gia over her whiskey. "Sounds like you need a new man." "No way. I made my life about Nikolas for too long. Now my life is going to be about me." Sam offered her glass up in a toast, "To living life on our own terms." hr 


	8. Suspicions

Helena Cassadine looked over the report in front of her. Samantha McCall had been diving near where the Ice Princess had been lost. She had then terminated her relationship with Jasper Jacks and managed to convince Lorenzo Alcazar to take her under his protection. Alcazar dealt with diamonds.  
  
Helena picked up her phone and dialed Tracy.  
  
"What?" the phone was answered rudely.  
  
Helena was accustomed to Ms Quartermaine's rougher edges. "Lorenzo Alcazar may have something that belongs to me."  
  
"Well, I doubt he's going to just hand it over," Tracy observed.  
  
"I want you to organize a raid on the compound. My man will be there to search the house once the inhabitants have been taken care of."  
  
"That place is a fortress, Helena. I won't be able to just send in a hit squad."  
  
"Then make them want out. Badly." hr Lorenzo was an early riser, something Esmerelda knew well. She was always up before him with his fruit plate and hot coffee at the ready. Unfortunately, she did not yet know the preferences of the rest of the guests, so she was preparing to make quite a spread for breakfast. Mr. Alcazar had invited so Imany/I young women here to stay. In her day it would have been scandalous. As it was, she just hoped he would find a wife among them. Esmerelda remembered how inconsolable he had been after Miss Germaine's death. It was more than time for him to find someone to ease his heart.  
  
When Lorenzo had finished his breakfast, he took the plate and glass to Esmerelda in the kitchen.  
  
"Esmerelda, please inform my guests that there will be a house meeting at 5pm." hr Sam didn't even want to know how much the pool cost to heat. She had dipped a toe in earlier and found the temperature much warmer than the Atlantic, and even sufficient for swimming. She missed the water and cold weather wasn't going to keep her from it.  
  
Elizabeth and Alexis watched her through the window. She was like the energizer bunny, peeling off lap after lap. Seven splashes followed by a pause as she flipped and kicked off again. And they'd both seen her take off her robe and slip into the pool wearing only a bikini. Elizabeth suddenly felt very fat and Alexis very old.  
  
Elizabeth was the first to comment. "She must have to build up a big calorie debt to eat the way she does. Did you see her at dinner?"  
  
Alexis was not prone to gossip, but she had to admit that for such a small person, Sam really did eat a lot. "I noticed when she took her third helping of shark. Dessert, too."  
  
Elizabeth nodded. "I get cold just looking at her."  
  
Gia wandered in and went to see what they were looking at. "No way. Is it even above freezing? That there must be a white girl thing, cause there is no friggin way you'd catch me freezing my ass off like that to just for some exercise."  
  
Alexis gave Gia a look. "You won't see me in the pool either, Gia."  
  
Elizabeth nodded. "Me either. I think that's strictly a Sam thing."  
  
Gia shook her head in disbelief. "Are you ready to go Alexis? I've got a visa card and no makeup. It's time to hit Wyndham's." hr Lorenzo's attention wandered from Faith as he caught sight of the McCall girl swimming laps in the pool from the window in his office with a certain degree of shock. For aesthetic reasons the pool was kept heated enough to allow it to remain full and uncovered, but not to comfortable swimming temperatures. Apparently the girl really was a creature of the water.  
  
"I'm sorry, Mrs. Rosco. What were you saying?"  
  
Faith was annoyed. "Eyeing another member of your harem, Lorenzo?"  
  
Lorenzo was surprised to hear the term applied to their situation, but once the idea was in his head it stuck. Lorenzo laughed at the thought.  
  
"I should be so lucky."  
  
Faith had always thought Lorenzo knew how attractive he was to the opposite sex. He certainly had the ego. "Oh, but you are that lucky. Just watch out you don't play favorites. You don't want to be around when they stop fighting with each other and turn on you."  
  
Lorenzo shook his head in amusement at the idea. They were all adults. Faith talked about them like they were a bunch of teenage girls.  
  
"We should see what the raid on the Corinthos-Morgan warehouse turned up before we meet with the former lieutenants. I want to have enough information to know if we can trust their information."  
  
Faith was displeased. Lorenzo was taking a hands-on approach to the turf war when all she really wanted from him was the money to fund it. This wasn't the time to push him, though, not when she was about to ask him for some major money to finance the latest piece of the puzzle.  
  
Faith snapped her fingers at Lorenzo, whose eyes had wandered back to the McCall girl. "Everything is at your warehouse. Are you ready to roll? Or do you want to stare some more?" hr After swimming her mile, Sam moved from the pool to the spa to warm up. If only she could put a spa on the salvage boat, then she'd really be living the high life.  
  
Sam relaxed and watched as what looked like exercise equipment was delivered.  
  
After a good long soak, she was too hot, so she fiddled with the spa controls to turn off the bubbles. In the silence that followed, she heard something that made the hair on the back of her neck stand up. It wasn't much, just some twigs snapping. She doubted that anyone else had even heard it, but she was trained to listen.  
  
She climbed out of the tub and put on her bathrobe and made her way out of the garden and through the main door, which was still open for the delivery men.  
  
"Stop. Shhh," she said to the men nearest her, then she walked all the way to the wall. There were definitely people moving outside the compound.  
  
She tried to be casual as she strolled to what she knew would be the security headquarters at the back of the garages. The antennae on the roof were a dead giveaway.  
  
Max and Marco heard the knock at the door and looked at the video feed activated when somebody stepped on the welcome mat. Miss McCall was standing there dripping wet in a bathrobe. They looked at each other with identical grins and opened the door.  
  
"I heard something funny. Do you guys have video feed from the area surrounding the compound?"  
  
Max spoke up. "Yeah. We haven't seen anything."  
  
Sam scanned the row of monitors. They were men. They weren't going to admit that they had probably not been watching closely enough. That was the problem with this kind of setup. Lorenzo needed infrared cameras that would automatically alert the guards to anything warm-blooded that might approach the compound.  
  
Sam decided to do her best impression of a girl who wanted to learn what the big, strong men have to teach her. "OK. Wow, this is so cool. Why don't you two show me how all this works?" Sam said in her husky voice.  
  
As they showed her all of the video feeds, something flashed in her peripheral vision. She pointed to the monitor on the corner. "What was just on here, before it flipped?"  
  
They reversed the order of the feeds to that monitor.  
  
"Zoom in on this," she said, pointing to what looked like a black twig and a smudge.  
  
It wasn't a twig. It was the barrel of a sniper's rifle with a man laying behind it, under what was probably a camouflage ground cover. The rifle was aimed at the gates.  
  
"There are more of those. That's not where I heard the sound come from."  
  
Johnny and Max suddenly took over, zooming out to the line of trees with all of the peripheral cameras.  
  
"We're surrounded," Sam observed, the excitement clear in her voice.  
  
"This place is built like a fortress. You'll be safe inside," Johnny said confidently.  
  
"I saved your asses, so you're going to listen to me and do exactly what I say," Sam said, her 'curious girl' demeanor gone.  
  
"They are obviously waiting for us to leave the compound. This makes me think that they have sent something in to make us Ibneed/I/b to leave the compound. We just took delivery of a bunch of exercise equipment. I bet there's a special present in one of the pieces. You're going to help me find it."  
  
"We can take it from here, ma'am. You should go back inside," Marco said, wishing the boss were around. He had been in charge of security for Mr. Alcazar for years. Nobody but Alcazar himself, or now Mrs. Rosco, gave him orders.  
  
"Look, I'm sure you're very good at your job. It just happens that I'm in the salvage business. I have experience blowing stuff up, and I understand the basics of bomb-building. Why not let me help? We're going to have to pry open some very expensive equipment. You can let me take the blame for it, just in case I'm wrong?"  
  
Deniability was good. Marco looked at Max. "OK, you can help. First get everyone into panic room through the closet in this room here," he said, pointing to a floorplan on the wall.  
  
Sam agreed, only because it would give her a chance to throw on some clothes and make a quick call on her satellite phone. hr Lorenzo answered his phone with a terse, "Alcazar." This was his business phone, not his personal one, so his voice was all business.  
  
Marco knew the boss liked things short and to the point. "There are snipers positioned around the entrance to the compound. The delivery truck is still here. Miss McCall mentioned the possibility that a bomb was brought into the compound in one of the pieces of equipment, and that the snipers may be trying to force us out. We are currently investigating that possibility."  
  
Lorenzo suppressed the urge to swear. He should be back at the compound supervising this. Something suddenly struck him as odd.  
  
"And how did Miss McCall come to be involved in this security matter?"  
  
"She was apparently finishing her swim when she heard the sounds of the men moving into position. She alerted us and we located them on the monitors."  
  
"Very well. Move the guests into the panic room until this matter has been taken care of."  
  
It was already done, but Marco answered with a "Yes, sir."  
  
"Keep me informed"  
  
Lorenzo turned back to Faith. "Someone apparently waited for us to leave the compound before staging an apparent attempt to breach security.  
  
Faith looked at Lorenzo speculatively. "What is at the compound that they could want, if since this is obviously not an attempt on us?"  
  
Suddenly Lorenzo remembered the McCall girl mentioning that Helena Cassadine would "crawl over broken glass" to get the Ice Princess back. He began to wonder if the timing of Sam's arrival and this armed attack were more than coincidence.  
  
Lorenzo dialed a number, hoping to reach the only bomb expert he knew. hr  
  
As they headed for the house, Sam and Max saw the delivery men carrying a stairmaster away from the truck.  
  
Sam called to them. "How much more do you have to unload?"  
  
"This is the last piece."  
  
Sam pulled Max aside. "If there is a bomb, it's either on a detonator, or it's on a timer. If it's on a detonator, they would be waiting until they knew it was inside to blow us up. I'm thinking that the delivery truck leaving would be the signal to them that everything is inside. Either that, or one of the delivery guys is working for the other side. Either way, someone should lock the two of them in a room and take their cell phones, until all this is over."  
  
The men started to protest, but the presence of the armed men who seemed to converge around them stilled their tongues. hr Alexis and Gia were still shopping when Johnny received the call on his cell phone. He had been assigned the unenviable task of maintaining security for two women in a crowded department store. Upon receiving word of the potential ambush at the compound, Johnny wanted nothing more than to escort the women to the armored limousine that waited outside.  
  
Gia had been watching Johnny with mild interest in between her forays to the various makeup counters to find the colors that best suited her mocha colored skin. Alexis was strictly a Chanel woman, and was now waiting for Gia to finish. When Gia had noticed Johnny taking a call, Alexis had followed her gaze.  
  
Now Johnny's blank look had returned, but he was paying extra attention to the shoppers surrounding his two charges and moved in closer. Alexis felt a strange paranoia creeping up on her and wondered if she would receive an answer if she asked Johnny what the phone call had been about. hr Sam was too excited to notice that she was cold. She jogged into the house, making a beeline for her phone. As she talked, she put on her clothes. It took only a second to find her thick multitool pocketknife.  
  
Sam went back downstairs to find Skye and Elizabeth. Skye was in the living room, reading. "Skye, where is Elizabeth?" she asked urgently.  
  
"They're in Kristina's bedroom." In truth, Skye had been hoping they would come out.  
  
"Come help me," Sam ordered, heading toward the bedroom.  
  
"What's the matter," Skye called out. Sam ignored her.  
  
Elizabeth and Kristina were on the floor, surrounded by toys.  
  
Sam looked from Skye to Elizabeth. "Look, this is probably nothing, but we have some reason to believe that there might be a bomb in the stuff that just got delivered. It would be best if you guys went to wait in a space with no windows."  
  
All of the rooms had floor to ceiling windows looking out on the garden. "There is a panic room that's blast-proof. You can take some toys for Kristina and hang out there there till we get the all-clear."  
  
"There's no way I'm going to let you lock us in a panic room?" Elizabeth said with certainty.  
  
Sam stared at Elizabeth. What part of this was she not getting? Then something from the dossier Sam had read percolated to the top of Sam's mind. "Do you really think that Mr. Alcazar would install a panic room that he could be trapped in? I'm sure it will be a matter of you locking us out."  
  
Elizabeth shook her head. "Who knows why Alcazar would have it installed? He held Carly hostage. I'm not going in a panic room."  
  
Sam glanced at Skye, who was no help at all. Skye had noticed that Sam kept using "you" instead of "us". "And where will you be, while we're waiting patiently in the panic room?"  
  
"I have experience with bombs," she said simply. "We occasionally blow things up in the salvage business."  
  
"The salvage business. Right," Skye said, not buying this for a second. Sam might know about bombs, but Skye doubted that the knowledge had been gained legally. hr With Skye, Elizabeth, and Kristina safely ensconced in the panic room, Sam made her way to the exercise room.  
  
She found Max and two other guards examining the half-assembled equipment.  
  
Obviously they hadn't found anything.  
  
"We need to search every nook and cranny of every piece. Get the other guards in here."  
  
Three men appeared. "Where's Marco?"  
  
"He went to call the boss."  
  
"Are you trying to draw him into an ambush?" Sam asked in exasperation.  
  
"No, ma'am," Max said, trying not to stare at the leather-clad woman before him. He couldn't help but find her attractive. She was able to command respect in spite of her tiny size, and she was apparently more excited by danger than afraid of it. hr Elizabeth had begun to feel better the moment she saw the panic room. This room had no bed, and was smaller than the panic room in her former house. There were also two plunger-type buttons against the wall by the door- one was red and one was green. It would be impossible to lock someone inside this room. In fact, it appeared that it was impossible for anyone on the outside to get in unless they were let in.  
  
Kristina hated the panic room, and hated that she wasn't allowed to touch any of the fun-looking controls in front of the monitors. Elizabeth could tell that the room wasn't child-proofed, so she was doing her best to contain Kristina within her arms.  
  
Finally, tired of her struggle, Kristina burst into tears.  
  
Skye had been watching, wishing she could intervene. At last she spoke up. "She likes it if you dance with her. Especially a waltz, but she likes the foxtrot, too."  
  
Elizabeth frowned. "I don't know any of those ballroom dances. But we can try what I can do."  
  
Kristina and Elizabeth did the two step for several minutes, but Kristina's crying was only slightly less strident.  
  
Kristina's crying echoed loudly in the concrete room, and before long, Elizabeth and Skye were each wincing.  
  
"Why not let me try," Skye said at last.  
  
Elizabeth was tired, her feet were swollen, and she knew Skye would do Kristina no harm. "We can't mention this to Alexis," she said as she handed the baby to Skye.  
  
"No, of course not."  
  
Skye began to do a sweeping waltz within the confines of the room and Kristina's cries subsided to burbles of excitement.  
  
Elizabeth moved things out of the way to make more floor space for Skye.  
  
Skye and Kristina were in their own little world, and Elizabeth felt only mildly guilty. Kristina was happy. Skye was wonderful with her. Elizabeth even found herself wanting to learn to waltz if it had this effect on the little girl. hr Sam surveyed the room. One man was examining the treadmill, another the elliptical trainer, and Max was going over the weight machines.  
  
Sam slipped over to the stairmaster and began taking it apart with the screwdriver of her utility knife. When she was able to pull away the plastic shield covering the mechanical parts inside, she sucked in a breath. Before her was a very complexly assembled bomb with a detonator ignition.  
  
"Bingo."  
  
The guards in the room looked at her, and then at the bomb mounted to the inner assembly of the stairmaster. Sam had a very curious expression on her face. The guards had their carefully-practiced blank stares that meant trouble. Marco pulled out his phone.  
  
Without preamble, he said, "We have located the bomb."  
  
Sam was memorizing the configuration, wishing she had a small mirror so she could see all sides of the bomb.  
  
"It's on a detonator. We don't know how much time we have. We need to move this outside the walls of the main house, quickly."  
  
Max and the other guard picked up the machine and began to carry it through the garden and out the main door.  
  
Lorenzo had heard Sam's voice through the phone. "Do not attempt to disarm the bomb until I have my man on the phone."  
  
"Yes, sir," Marco replied. hr Kristina and Skye were playing patty cake on the floor of the panic room while Elizabeth watched the monitors. Skye was concerned only with this precious time that she had been given with Princess Brat. The room was bomb- proof. What did she have to worry about?  
  
Elizabeth was more concerned. "They're carrying something out of the house now, and around to the side. Sam's going with them."  
  
Skye rolled her eyes. "No big loss. You know Sam claimed to be in love with Jax, but I bet you she dumped him so she could steal the Quartermaine treasure. That treasure belongs to my family, and there's nothing I can do about it, not if I want to stay here."  
  
Elizabeth's eyes opened wide. "What Quartermaine treasure?" hr "Just let me pay the lady and I'm done," Gia said to an impatient Alexis.  
  
Alexis was thinking about the work involved in preparing for a murder trial with an uncooperative client. "I had no idea you were this. selective. about your make-up."  
  
"It's easy for you, Alexis. You're white. Most of the major cosmetics companies consider anyone non-white a niche market. I have to pick and choose what actually looks good on me. I buy foundation at one counter, powder at another, concealer at another. Then there are color products, that's a whole different story. It was nice while Laura owned Deception because they had to carry products that worked with my skin, but now that the new owners have taken over, they dropped that line like a hot potato."  
  
Alexis held up her hand. "OK, Gia. I get it. You're not just being picky."  
  
Johnny overheard and was slightly less aggravated than he had been. For a while it had seemed like they were purposefully making his life difficult. He was already annoyed that he had to be the one to tell them what was going on back at the compound. Johnny waited until they were trapped in the car before filling them in.  
  
Lowering the divider between front and back, Johnny spoke.  
  
"There is a security problem outside the compound. We have to sit tight until it's resolved."  
  
Alexis was instantly suspicious. "What kind of security problem."  
  
"Nothing serious," Johnny lied.  
  
"My daughter is back at the compound. What is going on?"  
  
"You should ask Mr. Alcazar," Johnny said with relief.  
  
"OK," Alexis said, her heart going a mile a minute. If Johnny wouldn't tell them, it must be bad.  
  
All Alexis got was his voicemail. She left him a message asking him to call her immediately. Thinking quickly, she dialed Elizabeth's cell phone. Voicemail again.  
  
"I got his voicemail. I think you should tell us what is going on, Johnny. Exactly." Alexis had instantly come up with a half-dozen scenarios, all of them bad, and all of them involving her baby.  
  
"Sorry, Ms Davis. If it makes you feel any easier, there is a blast-proof panic room in the main house. I'm sure if there is any real danger, that's where your daughter is right now."  
  
"You think there will be a blast!"  
  
"It's just a descriptive term," Johnny lied again. He was definitely going to confession this week. hr Sam elbowed her way in between the guards and knelt down in front of the bomb.  
  
Pulling a pencil out of her pocket, she began diagramming the bomb on the concrete using letters for the wire colors and arrows to different symbols.  
  
When she was satisfied with her work, she pulled out her pocketknife and unfolded the scissors. The guards suddenly started hemming and hawing. "Ms McCall, Mr. Alcazar left instructions that we aren't to try to disarm the bomb until he calls back."  
  
"Do any of you know anything about bombs?"  
  
No one spoke up.  
  
Sam sat back slightly and the guards relaxed. as much as they could considering they were standing in front of a bomb. "So we should wait for Mr. Alcazar to call us back?" Sam asked, sounding sincere.  
  
Before anyone could stop her, she had grabbed the grey wire and snipped it.  
  
Max and the other guards had all felt a sudden adrenaline rush in the moment he saw her going for the bomb with her scissors. Sam had seen them flinching in her peripheral vision and chuckled to herself.  
  
"Sorry," she said apologetically. "It's kind of like ripping off a band- aid."  
  
Max glared at her. "It's nothing like ripping off a band-aid. Ripping off a band-aid wrong doesn't kill you."  
  
"Waiting only increased the possibility that someone would hit the detonator switch. Now you can worry about all the men hiding outside the compound. That should keep you and Mr. Alcazar busy for a while."  
  
They all watched Sam walk back inside. Now that the adrenaline had worn off, they had time to admire the way her hips swayed when she walked.  
  
Max laughed at the ridiculousness of the situation. The woman they were supposed to be guarding had saved their asses.  
  
"I call dibs." 


End file.
